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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24096130">Second Chances</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eileniessa/pseuds/Eileniessa'>Eileniessa</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Abusive Relationships, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Developing Relationship, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, First Dates, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Homophobia, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Pining, Romance, Slow Burn, Suicide Attempt</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 23:14:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>75,424</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24096130</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eileniessa/pseuds/Eileniessa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Yennefer’s a mess. She’s an angel. Can she save her again?</p>
<p>Four years after she tried to take her life, Yennefer Vengerberg, a child abuse survivor, is having lunch with her abusive boyfriend when she meets her guardian angel for the second time. Her name is Tissaia Lawrence, a law student from Aretuza university, who is everything Yennefer is not. Intelligent, hard-working, controlled, and single.</p>
<p>Lost and confused, and driven by the desire to know more about her mysterious saviour, Yennefer is determined to get closer to the young woman that talked her down. But what Yennefer doesn’t realize as that the more she learns about Tissaia, the harder she falls.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Tissaia de Vries/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>538</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>418</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Passer-By</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Viewer discretion advised: this story contains content that some readers might find distressing. Please check the chapter for warnings.</p><p>Warning: this chapter contains attempted suicide that some readers might find distressing. If you become distressed while reading the chapter, please refer to your national suicide hotline or access support online from the website MIND.</p><p>Disclaimer: this is a work of fan fiction using characters from the books by Andrzej Sapkowski, the game series by CD Projekt Red and the TV series by Netflix. I do not claim ownership to any of these characters and have written this fan fiction for entertainment, not financial gain.</p><p>Updates: a new chapter will be posted every Saturday and Wednesday evening (GMT).</p><p>Constructive criticism: constructive criticism is welcome.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer's life changed for good one cloudless Tuesday morning in July when, at fifteen years old, she decided that tonight was a beautiful night to die.</p>
<p>With the town sleeping and the lights off, the stars were bright, and she watched them from the overpass that lead out of the town centre with her feet dangling over the edge of the railing. Later, when the police asked her how she had gotten there, Yennefer didn't have a story to tell. One moment, she remembered lying beaten and bruised in the overgrown grass of the park outside Vengerberg's town hall, and then, she was sitting at the edge of the bridge with about ten metres between her and the end of everything. She knew that she was ready to go, and she would have jumped, if not for the one passer-by who stopped.</p>
<p>Yennefer didn't hear the car pull up behind her or notice the figure that climbed out until they asked her to come down. The stranger was a young woman probably only a few years older than her, but who was so smartly dressed that at first glance Yennefer had thought she was an adult on her way home from an office job and tensed up at the sight of her. But, when she came closer and stepped into the dim and particularly unflattering light of a nearby streetlamp, Yennefer saw her youthful features.</p>
<p>She turned her eyes back to the road below her and watched the passer-by out of the corner of her as she slowly moved up to the railing on her right and kept out of arms reach. The stranger asked her to come down and talk, she promised that she could help her, and assured Yennefer that she did not want to do this. Yennefer didn't say anything and tried to ignore her, only speaking up when she started to get closer. The young woman stopped, held her hands up and asked Yennefer to look at her. After a pause, she did and stared at the passer-by when they asked her to give herself just one more day. Then, smiling at her and offering out her hand, she asked Yennefer to trust her, please, because she wanted to help, because she cared. Please, she said, take me hand and let me help you. And Yennefer did.</p>
<p>She collapsed into the young woman's arms and cried her heart out into their chest. The police arrived before she had finished, but the stranger didn't let her go until she was ready and then sat with her in the back of the police car while she talked to the officers. There, she told them things that she had not spoken to anyone about and admitted things that she had sworn she would never say. She told them about how her father abused her, about how her mother never helped her, about how she scavenged for food in the pig's trough, and how her parents refused to let the doctors fix her curved spine. She told them almost everything and stopped just short of delivering her whole life story.</p>
<p>By the end, she was exhausted and must have fallen asleep with her head on the young woman's shoulder because the next thing she remembered was waking up in the hospital surrounded by adults she didn't recognize and with her passer-by nowhere to be seen. And she hadn't even asked her name. No one else, not the police, nurses, or social workers got anything out of her for the rest of the night and most of the following day. She had lost her confidence to speak.</p>
<p>With the evidence that she had provided the police, her parents were arrested and a few weeks later she was shipped out of her hometown of Vengerberg, the only place she had ever known, to an orphanage in the neighbouring city of Lyria, where the authorities believed she could have a new start. For that reason, and to help protect her identity, her name was changed from Jenny Hanson to Yennefer Vengerberg. Yes, like the place, she would say, because the man who had filled out her form was an idiot who had been too busy flirting to check her paperwork properly. She lived in that care home for about three years and had her spine corrected before moving halfway across the continent to the portside city of Gors Velen.</p>
<p>Which is how Yennefer came to be standing in a coffee shop near the city's university at lunchtime, and why it was her that almost knocked over the passer-by who had saved her life just over four years ago.</p>
<hr/>
<p>The coffee shop was filled with the usual cluster fuck of sound that marked lunchtime on a Wednesday in the middle of Gors Velen's busy city centre. Ceramic cups and saucers clinked together, metal chair legs screeched like the stools from a school science lab when people dragged them across the cheap wooden floorboards that were stained with a decade's worth of foot traffic, and people talked idly about what little Claire made a school yesterday or how dull their meeting had been. When Yennefer arrived at the till she handed the server two cheese and ham paninis that she had snatched from the fridge and away from an angry, suit-wearing office type and asked for them to be toasted. She also ordered a tea, plain, and a large, extremely hot, extra shot latte with an unhealthy amount of chocolate powder on top.</p>
<p>After receiving her order, Yennefer battled her way through the overpacked coffee shop, rubbing herself against at least two other people when she attempted to squeeze between occupied chairs and sat down beside the front door. The spot was far from ideal, with a blast of cold air rushing in her direction whenever someone opened the door, and the table was wet and sticky, but it was the only space left that meant she wouldn't have to sit next to someone else. She took the drinks and food off the tray, leant the flimsy piece of plastic against the grubby window, which was covered in advertisements for their October specials and Halloween treats, and picked up her latte with both hands. The coffee steamed her face as she took a large drink, and she was half-way through the hot beverage when her lunch partner arrived.</p>
<p>Istredd was a fairly tall and well-built man in his mid-twenties with very tight, curly black hair that was cut close at the sides but longer at the top. There was a small beauty spot above the slope of his right upper lip and he spoke with a voice that made him sound as though he'd come straight out of a period drama set in the early twentieth century. He worked in the museum around the corner as a historian and archaeologist, which is where they had met about six months ago, and they had been dating since then. Yennefer waved him over, they kissed, and then Istredd sat down and started to pour himself some tea.</p>
<p>"Did you look at the email I forwarded you?" he asked.</p>
<p>"Yes," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"And what did you think?"</p>
<p>"That I'm not interested."</p>
<p>Istredd dropped his half-eaten panini back onto the plate. "Yenna, we talked about this."</p>
<p>"Then why are we having this conversation?" said Yennefer. "I've already told you I'm not taking an apprenticeship at the museum, so stop asking."</p>
<p>"Fine. We can look somewhere else."</p>
<p>Yennefer slammed a fist into the table. "No," she said. "How many times do I have to tell you that I am not taking an apprenticeship. Not at the museum, not anywhere. Are you just too thick-headed to remember, or have your precious bones filled that empty head of yours with too much dust for you to hear?"</p>
<p>Istredd narrowed his eyes. "Calm down and stop making a scene. You're embarrassing yourself."</p>
<p>Yennefer huffed and leaned back in her chair, moving as far away from Istredd as she could get, and taking her drink with her. Istredd sighed and ran a hand over his forehead.</p>
<p>"Look," he said, "whether you like it or not, the fact remains that if you want to make something of yourself, you need to get a better education. Classrooms are not for you, I get that. But with an apprenticeship, you would be learning on the job and it would improve your career prospects."</p>
<p>"I already have a career."</p>
<p>Istredd shook his head. "Bar work doesn't count. It's a job, not a career. You can't expect to go anywhere working in a place like The Lioness."</p>
<p>"So what? I like working there and it pays well. Why would I leave to do something that I know I am going to hate?"</p>
<p>"Because I don't care what you want. I'm concerned with what is best for you, and for us."</p>
<p>Yennefer lowered the coffee cup from her lips. "For us?" she said.</p>
<p>"Yes, for us," said Istredd. "Do you understand how embarrassing it is for me when people ask about you and I have nothing to say? They expect me to talk about your education and career, but you lack either."</p>
<p>Yennefer sat up and glared at him. "Then maybe you should find yourself a nice little trophy wife instead of a girlfriend."</p>
<p>The latte added to the heat she felt rising in her chest as she downed the rest of her drink and put the empty cup down on the saucer. She stood up to leave, and Istredd grabbed her wrist. He pulled her forward and she leant over the table between them, supporting herself with one arm.</p>
<p>"Let go," Yennefer shouted.</p>
<p>A few people turned to stare at them, and she guessed that Istredd had noticed too because he released her and held his hands up.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," he said, but Yennefer wasn't sure she believed him. "I shouldn't have lost my temper, but I'm only angry with you because I care. I want you to do well in life, Yenna, and you can't find success behind that bar. Don't you see that?"</p>
<p>Istredd smiled at her and Yennefer started to feel uncomfortable. Had she overacted? Her eyes darted around the room and she sat back down, leant her arms on the table and held her head in her hand. Then, she took a deep breath.</p>
<p>"Look at me," said Istredd.</p>
<p>Yennefer did.</p>
<p>"I wouldn't be pressing you if I didn't think that it was worth it," he said. Istredd reached across the table and held her arms just above the elbow. "I'm not trying to upset you or start an argument, I just want what is best for you, and that is getting a better education and a proper career. If history isn't for you, then that's fine, and it would probably be better if one of us were used to working with people rather than broken bones and pottery."</p>
<p>Istredd chuckled and the look on his face made Yennefer smile, and she began to wonder how she had gotten so angry with him.</p>
<p>"There are plenty of other apprenticeships or training opportunities out there for you to choose," he continued. "And I'm not saying that you need to leave your job by tomorrow and start something new. I'm just asking you to look at what is out there and to think about it. Okay?"</p>
<p>Yennefer nodded. "Okay," she said. Now, she believed him.</p>
<p>Istredd held her face with his hand and guided her in for a kiss. They talked about Istredd's current project at the museum, or rather he talked and she listened, for the rest of his lunch break. When it was time for him to leave, Istredd went to use the bathroom leaving Yennefer to clear up their table. She picked up their rubbish and put it in the bin and looked down at a text on her phone while she pushed her way through the crowd, only looking up again when she knocked into someone. They stumbled backwards and Yennefer reached out to steady them, holding them by the arm.</p>
<p>"Sorry," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She let go when the stranger was steady on their feet and stepped back to look at them. The stranger was a young woman with bright blue eyes that Yennefer guessed was around five foot two because, despite the killer size of her high heels, which looked long enough to use as a decent kebab skewer, she was still about half a head shorter than Yennefer in her more moderately sized heeled boots. She had dark brown hair tied up in a neat bun at the bottom of her head and a plait down the left side. A few loose strands of hair framed her face, which was younger than Yennefer had expected given the stranger's casual formal attire of a loose pink shirt, with a modest v neck, that was long enough to cover the top of her dark blue skinny jeans. She was also wearing a light brown suede jacket and had an expensive-looking satchel across her chest and a laptop case in her arms.</p>
<p>Yennefer froze. The stranger looked like the passer-by that had talked her down, only, she hadn't remembered her being this beautiful.</p>
<p>"It's alright," said the young woman as she straightened out her sleeves. "Just mind where you are going next time."</p>
<p>Yennefer continued to stare at the stranger. She even sounded the same.</p>
<p>The young woman caught her eye and a look of confusion passed over her. "Is something the matter?" she asked.</p>
<p>But Yennefer didn't hear her words. Instead, she noticed the voice that had spoken and knew it as her saviour. It was the voice that had talked her down, and she was the woman that had saved her.</p>
<p>"Don't you recognize me?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"Should I?" said the passer-by.</p>
<p>Yennefer rubbed her neck. It had been a silly question. "I- probably not. I suppose I don't look the same anymore. I'm the girl from the bridge in Vengerberg. You saved my life."</p>
<p>The stranger looked at her intensely and then her eyes widened. "Jenny?" she said.</p>
<p>"Yes, but not anymore. I'm called Yennefer now and you're…" Yennefer trailed off. "I never asked your name."</p>
<p>"Tissaia Lawrence," she said and held out her hand.</p>
<p>Yennefer took it, and Tissaia grasped her hand firmly and shook it with confidence.</p>
<p>"I never thought I'd see you again," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Neither did I," said Tissaia. "But I did wonder what happened to you after that ambulance took you away. How are you?"</p>
<p>"Better."</p>
<p>"That's good to hear." There was a slight pause and Tissaia looked down at her watch. "Well," she said, "it has been a pleasure seeing you again, Yennefer, but I have to go. My lecture starts in a few minutes."</p>
<p>"Oh, okay. See you around."</p>
<p>The other woman inclined her head and started heading for the door.</p>
<p>"Wait," said Yennefer, and the other woman looked back. "Thank you, for what you did. You were right, things did get better."</p>
<p>Tissaia smiled. "I'm glad I could help," she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer watched her walk through the coffee shop and lost sight of her in the crowd by the door. She tried to catch a glimpse of her on the street, but it was too busy outside. She was gone. At least she had a name now, though she would have liked a number. Perhaps she would ask Tissaia the next time that they met, if there was a next time. Yennefer hoped that there would be and, quite unrelated to that, decided that it would be a good idea for her and Istredd to meet for lunch near the museum more often.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you for reading the first chapter, I hope you enjoyed it. I've had a lot of fun writing this story so far, and based on what I have written to date (19 000 words), I predict that 'Second Chances' will be upwards of 60 000 words.</p><p>I would like to clarify, because I believe that a few people who follow me on Tumblr or had read my other works might be confused by this story, that I do not canonically ship Tissaia and Yennefer. Personally, that is not how I view their relationship and if you disagree then that's fine. However, I like the idea of a character like Tissaia and a character like Yennefer being together. I have chosen to write this story for a lot of personal reasons, the main ones being that I have recently begun to wonder whether I am a lesbian and that I see a lot of myself in Tissaia and what I think I like in a romantic partner in Yennefer, and I will admit that I am a little bit nervous about posting this work. I've never written a romance before and besides a Mass Effect one shot and a Witcher one shot I have never written about an LGBTQ couple or written a story that is not fantasy or sci-fi. I hope that my inexperience doesn't show too much or take away from the story because I've come to love it.</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Lioness</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warning: this chapter contains domestic abuse (physical violence and emotional abuse). If you become distressed while reading the chapter, please refer to your national domestic abuse helpline.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Lioness was a small bar just on the outskirts of the city centre that wasn't as fancy as the name might suggest. The décor was a mix of blues and silver and there was a long bar on one side of the room and a dance floor across the rest of the bottom floor with a raised stage for show-offs and karaoke singers. A staircase opposite the bar lead up to the second floor and the lounge area, which was about one third the size of the ground floor and had railings rather than walls, where people could sit, talk, and, more likely, entertain themselves by watching and judging the drunken ramble beneath them.</p>
<p>With tonight being a Wednesday, the day that most of Aretuza University's student clubs had their non-alcoholic socials that tended to end with a trip to the bar to help them make it to the weekend, The Lioness had been packed and it showed. They had closed at three in the morning and at half-past, they were still finding cups and bottles hidden around the club like Easter eggs. While her colleagues cleaned the floors and removed all the rubbish, Yennefer was behind the bar cleaning glasses and making sure everything was in order, which it would be, if she didn't keep dropping things.</p>
<p>"And where exactly is your head at this evening?"</p>
<p>Yennefer put down the glass that she had just knocked off the bar and turned around to see a woman looking at her. Her name was Calanthe and she was a regular at The Lioness whose ongoing tab would have been cut of months ago if she didn't happen to own the place. She was middle-aged, but rarely acted as such, with messy brown hair gathered up in a ponytail. She had a fierce reputation for her ability to drink anyone under the table and was more foul-mouthed and loudly obnoxious than even the worst sailors down at the docks.</p>
<p>"Nowhere special," Yennefer said as she started to wipe down the bar.</p>
<p>"Bullshit," said Calanthe. She stepped forward and leaned against the counter next to Yennefer. "Something's on your mind, and you're taking it out on my glasses. Poor bastards."</p>
<p>Yennefer noticed a stain on the counter and started rubbing it with the cloth.</p>
<p>"You're not thinking about that arsehole you call a boyfriend, are you?" Calanthe asked.</p>
<p>"No," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She chose to ignore her boss' choice of words. It was an argument that she knew she wouldn't win because she never had before.</p>
<p>"Shame. Here I was thinking that you might have finally come to your senses and decided to get rid of that pompous peacock."</p>
<p>Yennefer sighed and looked up. "You know, if you just gave Istredd a chance-"</p>
<p>"Then I might decide I like the way my hands feel around his neck when him wringing his throat," said Calanthe while she pretended to strangle Yennefer's imaginary boyfriend.</p>
<p>Yennefer rolled her eyes and started putting away the cleaned glasses that someone had just brought out from the dishwasher.</p>
<p>"Well, if it's not boy troubles," Calanthe continued, "then what is it? Tell me, or I might just start to remember your tab."</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped what she was doing, leant against the cabinet opposite Calanthe and then looked between her and the other people in the room.</p>
<p>"Alright, that's enough for tonight," Calanthe shouted over her shoulder. "You clean this place anymore and people are going to think we've had a remodelling. Clear off."</p>
<p>When the other staff had walked out the door, Calanthe fixed herself and Yennefer a shot of vodka. They both downed their drink in one and slammed their empty glasses down on the counter.</p>
<p>"Do you remember what I told you about how I ended up in care?" Yennefer asked, fiddling with her shot glass.</p>
<p>The smile dropped from Calanthe's face and she started to look surprisingly sober. "I do."</p>
<p>"Calm down, Calanthe," said Yennefer. "It's not what you think. I haven't gone back to where I was, that's not what this is about."</p>
<p>"Then what are you trying to say. Spit it out, girl."</p>
<p>Yennefer took a deep breath and stared at the bottom of her glass. "The passer-by, the one who helped me, I saw her today."</p>
<p>"What. Where?"</p>
<p>"In the Costa near the museum. I bumped into her and nearly knocked her over."</p>
<p>"That's not a great way to treat a woman like that."</p>
<p>Yennefer glared at her over her shoulder. "Don't mock me," she said, "it was an accident. Besides, I wouldn't have noticed her otherwise."</p>
<p>Calanthe held up her hands. It was the best apology Yennefer was going to get. "And did you get her name?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Yes, Tissaia. Tissaia Lawrence."</p>
<p>"Lawrence," Calanthe said, sounding surprised. "Are you sure?"</p>
<p>Yennefer raised an eyebrow at her. "Yes. Why?"</p>
<p>"Oh, it doesn't matter." Calanthe refilled their glasses and Yennefer took another shot. "Please tell me you got her contact details," said Calanthe."</p>
<p>"I didn't," said Yennefer. "And before you ask, no, I couldn't find her on social media."</p>
<p>Calanthe brought her shot glass to her lips. "That is a pity," she said. "You see, I was rather hoping that she would be able to talk your dump arse down again and save you from this godawful train wreck that you call a happy relationship." She raised her glass in a mock toast and then downed.</p>
<p>"Are you ever going to let this go?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>Calanthe laughed. "Don't ask stupid questions. You know I won't. Now," she refilled their glasses again and handed one to Yennefer. "Drink up, and promise me that the next time you see that girl, your beautiful guardian angel, you'll grab hold of her and never let her go."</p>
<p>"I never said she was beautiful."</p>
<p>"No, but it's written all over your face," Calanthe said, holding Yennefer's chin between her fingers, laughing when Yennefer pulled her head away. "If I didn't know better-"</p>
<p>"And you usually don't."</p>
<p>"I would say," Calanthe continued, ignoring her, "that you were smitten."</p>
<p>"You're delusional."</p>
<p>"Pot, kettle, black. Now take the damn shot and get out of here. You cost me too much to pay you overtime."</p>
<p>They clinked their glasses together and downed their liquor then headed for the door. On their way out, Calanthe insisted on calling a taxi for Yennefer and helped her into the car. Yennefer watched her out of the back window as she started walking to her flat in the centre of the city with the confident strides of a professional drunkard</p><hr/>
<p>Yennefer arrived at her block of flats ten minutes later and when she went to pay the driver he told her that Calanthe had already covered her fare. She stepped out of the car and got a text from her boss asking her to text back and confirm that she had arrived home safe, which Yennefer did.</p>
<p>She unlocked the door to her building and decided to risk taking the janky elevator up to her floor. Its doors took too long to open for her liking, and she squeezed through the gap rather than waiting when she started to feel claustrophobic. She fumbled with the key to her front door for a few seconds and then opened it and turned on the light. Her flat was small, consisting of one large room that housed the kitchen, dining room and lounge, a bedroom that was just large enough for a double bed, and a closet broom bathroom that arguably couldn't even fit one person comfortable in it at a time.</p>
<p>Yennefer closed the door behind her a lot less carefully that she knew she should have, and kicked off her boots. She padded across the old grey carpet into the kitchen, with its sticky wooden floorboards, and poured herself a glass of water before dropping down onto her couch and chugging it in one go. Lying on her back, Yennefer massaged her temples while she looked at her phone in an attempt not to drift off to sleep. She was halfway through her twitter feed when the door to the bedroom opened and Istredd stepped out in his boxers.</p>
<p>"Yennefer what…" Istredd stopped short and stared at her. "Are you drunk?"</p>
<p>"No," Yennefer said, looking back at her phone with renewed interest. "Maybe a little tipsy but-"</p>
<p>"How much did you have?"</p>
<p>"Istredd it doesn't-"</p>
<p>"Tell me," he said, raising his voice.</p>
<p>Yennefer locked her phone and held it tightly in her hands. "Three shots of vodka."</p>
<p>Istredd clenched his fists. "For heaven's sake, Yenna," he said, bringing his hands up and then slapping his palms against his legs.</p>
<p>"What's your problem?" Yennefer shouted, sitting up. "It's just a couple of drinks, you're overreacting."</p>
<p>"Overreacting, me? Are you honestly so stupid and self-absorbed that you can't see what's wrong?"</p>
<p>Yennefer threw her phone down and jumped to her feet. "Don't talk to me like that."</p>
<p>Istredd stepped towards her until they were standing almost toe to toe. Yennefer could see sweat clinging to his brow and a slight redness in his face.</p>
<p>"If you weren't acting like this," he said through bared teeth, "then I wouldn't have to. Now sit down before you hurt yourself."</p>
<p>Yennefer glared at him, not backing down until he took a step forward, forcing her back. Her legs hit the couch and she dropped onto it. She gripped her thighs while she watched Istredd snatch the empty glass up from the coffee table and storm out of sight. He returned a few seconds later and thrust the filled glass into Yennefer's hand, then sat down on an armchair next to the couch and watched her. Yennefer refused to look at him and stared at her feet while she drank the lukewarm water.</p>
<p>After a few minutes, and to Yennefer's dismay, Istredd broke the silence. "This is the third day in a row you've come back drunk," he said.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked up. "I'm not-"</p>
<p>"Let me finish," Istredd interrupted. Yennefer shut her mouth and sunk into the couch, willing it to swallow her. "You need to stop drinking," he continued. "It's irresponsible and childish, and I think it's about time you began acting your age. You can start by leaving that bar."</p>
<p>A fresh swell of anger welled in Yennefer's chest. "Here we go again," she shouted. Confusion flashed across Istredd's face. "I thought you said you'd let me think about it, that I didn't have to quit bar work right now."</p>
<p>"That was before you came back drunk again," he said.</p>
<p>"Oh, I'm absolutely shit-faced," she drawled mockingly, gesturing to herself. "It was just a few drinks. You're acting like me and Calanthe drank the whole fucking bar."</p>
<p>There was a pause. "You were drinking with her?" said Istredd.</p>
<p>Yennefer clenched her jaw and let out an irritated scream. "Seriously, Istredd?" she said. "Do you really think that I'm such a low-life alcoholic that I would steal drinks from behind the bar?"</p>
<p>"Of course not, stop twisting my words," he said. "It's just no wonder that you can't seem to grow up given the company that you keep, and Calanthe's the worst of them, which is truly saying something. She's, what, in her early forties but she hangs around with people half her age getting drunk at her own bar and with her employees, no less."</p>
<p>"Don't speak about her like that," said Yennefer, slamming her glass down on the table. "You don't know anything about her."</p>
<p>"I know enough to tell that she'd a bad influence, Yenna. Just look at what happened to her daughter. It was all over the-"</p>
<p>Yennefer sprang to her feet and Istredd got up to meet her.</p>
<p>"Don't you dare bring her daughter into this, you fucking arsehole," she screamed in his face, fists shaking by her sides. "You don't know what you're talking about, none of you pricks do."</p>
<p>"She's dangerous," said Istredd, "and if you're not careful, then you'll end up just like that girl."</p>
<p>"Fuck you!"</p>
<p>Yennefer pushed Istredd's shoulders and he took a step back. She tried to storm past him and into the bedroom, but a hand fastened around her upper left arm. Panicked, Yennefer tried to pull herself free but Istredd seized her other arm and spun her around and held her up against the wall. He put his face right in hers and she closed her eyes, pressing the side of her face against the wall. She struggled to breathe and went limp in his arms, sliding to the floor when he let go and stumbled backwards.</p>
<p>Her nails pierced the surface of her skin as she hugged herself. When Istredd called out her name softly and tried to crouch beside her, Yennefer flinched and covered her head with her arms, shaking all over and too terrified to scream. Istredd stepped back and she heard him drop into the armchair. She wasn't sure how long she sat curled up against the wall, but the moment she felt strong enough to do so, Yennefer got up and locked herself in the bedroom.</p>
<p>She pulled an empty suitcase down from the top of her overflowing wardrobe and hastily threw a handful of clothes inside and zipped it up. Istredd, who was sitting with his head in his hands, didn't look up when she came out and grabbed a few things from the bathroom, throwing them into a backpack before heading to the front door and slamming it shut behind her.</p><hr/>
<p>The hair on Yennefer's bare arms stood on end as her feet carried her down empty and poorly lit streets that were littered with enough empty cans and beer bottles for people to recognize it as the local student enclave. After fifteen minutes of tripping over discarded drinks and walking around split bin bags, Yennefer stopped outside a door between a fish and chip shop and an Indian restaurant and slipped a key out of her bag. She had to battle with the handle to get the door open, and almost slipped on the pile of takeaway pamphlets just inside the door after she stepped into the narrow corridor.</p>
<p>Cursing under her breath, Yennefer turned on her phone's flashlight, shut the door, and tucked the trip hazard behind the pipes going along the bottom of the wall. Then, she started hauling her bag up the staircase. There were two doors at the top of the stairs, and she unlocked the one on the left and walked into the flat above the chippy. Immediately, she used her flashlight to find the light switch and turned it on. The hanging light sputtered to life and continued to flicker, making the room look like something out of a shitty, eighties slasher film.</p>
<p>The flat was similar to hers, but slightly smaller in size and with the housing agency's stickers plastered on the kitchen cabinets and the stained IKEA kitchen table that was propped up with textbooks. It belonged to two of the people she had grown up in care with, Philippa and Sabrina, both young women attending Aretuza university. They had given her a spare key months ago for occasions like this.</p>
<p>Yennefer dropped her bags by the tattered sofa, which had several seat cushions and back pillows that were the wrong size, and rummaged around in the two-drawer cabinet beneath the mounted TV. She found a light bulb hiding in the back behind a broken Wii remote and took it out. Standing on the sofa's armrest and holding her phone in her mouth, Yennefer unscrewed the old light bulb and replaced it. She threw the old one in the trash, where it bounced out because of how full the bin was, and lay down on the sofa under a blanket she had packed and tried to go to sleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I suppose this is a little bit of an expositional chapter, but I promise that things will start to pick up in chapter 3. Oh, and I have to warn you that the naming doesn't get any better. I can't name things (or people) xD</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Philippa's Study Group</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>She was woken up far too early, at about half seven in the morning, when Philippa noisily started to get ready to go to her lectures. Yennefer ignored her, too tired to get into an argument, and watched the television. Istredd tried to ring her, but she ignored him and after three attempts he left a voicemail for her to ignore too. When Philippa left, she went to sleep in her empty bed and slept soundly till the early afternoon when she returned and yanked the covers off the bed.</p><p>"For heaven's sake Yennefer," she said. "You simply can't lie in bed feeling sorry for yourself all day, especially not over him. Besides, I need my room back."</p><p>Yennefer, who had kept her eyes closed during Philippa's little rant hoping that she would just go away, felt something land on her face and pulled it off, grumbling. It was a towel. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up in bed and looked at Philippa, the eldest of her so-called 'care sisters'.</p><p>She was standing in the doorway, hands on her hip, with an extreme case of resting bitch face that Yennefer had become so accustomed to, it no longer gave her reason to pause. Her face was long and her features thin, but she was a very attractive woman in an intimidating, please stand on me, sort of way. She wore a pair of thick, fashionable glasses that she was practically blind without, and had long, dark brown hair that would have reached down to her waist if not held in her customary double plaits. On the outside of her right upper arm, she had a tattoo of a black and white owl holding a pair of interlocked female sex symbols that were coloured in like a pride flag, just to make sure you couldn't fail to catch what she was trying to tell you.</p><p>"Go and take a shower," Philippa said, looking down her nose at her. "You look a frightful mess."</p><p>Yennefer wanted to protest, but seeing as she was currently squatting in her flat, she decided that it would be best not to test how merciful Philippa was feeling, especially since the answer was likely 'not at all', as it was most days. She spent as long as she dared in the shower, knowing that Philippa wasn't above asking her to contribute to the utility bill, and dried her hair in Sabrina's room before putting on a pair of black skinny jeans and a white top. Without bothering to put on her face, she went downstairs to the chippy and ordered a large portion of battered fish and chips, hold the mushy peas. Today was not the day for vegetables. She took her prize catch upstairs and sat down to eat in front of the TV, ignoring Philippa's remarks about her boorishness.</p><p>"I have people coming over later," Philippa said from the dining table where she was sitting with her laptop. "So, you can't slouch in front of that TV all day. We need to study."</p><p>"But they aren't here yet, are they," said Yennefer.</p><p>She settled on watching some mind-numbing reality TV show that involved a lot of hot and mostly naked men and women shouting at each other, making it rather unremarkable and indistinct, as far as that genre was concerned. The episode was just reaching its climax when there was a knock at the door. Philippa got up from the table and looked at Yennefer then the TV. Yennefer turned the volume down and switched on the subtitles, but left the TV on. She heard the door open but didn't catch what Philippa said and quickly glanced behind her to see who had come in. When she saw them standing beside the table, she did a double-take. It was Tissaia. She looked at Yennefer and then her eyes flickered to the television screen. Yennefer snatched up the remote and shut it off before Tissaia had a chance to see what she had been watching.</p><p>"What are you doing here?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"Philippa asked me to help her and some other students go over the material for one of the lectures that was cancelled recently," she said.</p><p>Yennefer recalled Philippa and Sabrina complaining about their lack of contact hours this semester because of the strikes. Personally, Yennefer would have been pleased. She had always preferred self-study, not that she had ever been any good at it. Then again, maybe if some of her teaches had looked a little more like Tissaia, then she would have paid more attention in class.</p><p>"Law or politics?" said Yennefer. She knew that Philippa was doing a joint.</p><p>"Law. I'm a PhD student, this is my final year."</p><p>"Do either of you care to fill me in," Philippa said, looking between them, "because I'm rather at a loss here."</p><p>"Tissaia is the passer-by who stopped me from jumping," said Yennefer.</p><p>"Then it truly is a small world."</p><p>Philippa moved back to the table and sat down. Tissaia joined her, turning her back on Yennefer and placing her bag on an empty chair. She took out a notebook and two pens, and Yennefer watched her as she arranged the items to her liking, lining them up neatly, and remembered the way that Tissaia had straightened her jacket after they had bumped into each other. Tissaia certainly had some form of OCD, and Yennefer was surprised by how endearing it was to watch her organizing things. She hadn't been aware she had a cleaning fetish.</p><p>With their conversation appearing to have come to an end, Yennefer, feeling somewhat disappointed, started to sink back into the cushions, but immediately sat upright when Tissaia looked back at her.</p><p>"Are you studying at Aretuza too?" she asked.</p><p>Philippa snorted<em>.</em> "Yennefer? Don't make me laugh. Education was never her strong suit."</p><p>Yennefer caught Philippa's eye and shot her a dirty look. Philippa's smile widened.</p><p>"No," she continued, "I have the great misfortune of knowing her because we spent a few years in care together. And just when I thought I had gotten rid of her and all her emotional baggage, she went and followed me here."</p><p>"Don't flatter yourself, Phil, your ego doesn't need the boost," said Yennefer. She looked back at Tissaia who had been watching them indifferently. "I only came here because it was as far as I could afford to go. If I'd had the money, I would have gone as far as Skellige."</p><p>"No, you wouldn't have," said Philippa, "you hate the cold. Stop exaggerating. The world already has enough drama queens."</p><p>Yennefer glared at her and tried to think up a suitably damming retort, but Tissaia caught her attention and distracted her before she could bite back.</p><p>"I take it your parents were arrested after what happened," she said.</p><p>Yennefer swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. "Yes, yes they were."</p><p>She watched Tissaia closely, but the other woman didn't give away any hint about what she was thinking, only nodding in acknowledgement of Yennefer's reply. It made Yennefer feel as though she was at a great disadvantage. She knew barely anything about the other woman while Tissaia had sat with her in the back of that police care while she shared her life story. Yennefer wondered how much Tissaia remembered about what she had said and considered asking, but thought better of it.</p><p>"Well, aren't you two fun," Philippa said, leaning back on her chair legs. "I can practically feel the life draining out of this room. It's no wonder you never join the socials, Tissaia."</p><p>Yennefer clutched the back of the sofa. She knew that Philippa was an arse, and she'd gotten used to that, but did she have to give Tissaia the same treatment. What if it sent her away?</p><p>"Need I remind you that I am doing you a favour," said Tissaia, frowning. "There are plenty of better things I could be doing with my time than babysitting undergraduates who are too narcissistic to admit to their professors that they require assistance."</p><p>The smirk dropped from Philippa's face. Yennefer had never witnessed anyone put her care sister in her place with such little effort. It was beautiful.</p><p>"I'm sorry," said Philippa.</p><p>Tissaia stared at her for a few more seconds and then there was a knock at the door. Philippa got up to answer it as quick as she could without breaking into a run and, for a moment, Yennefer was sure that she saw Tissaia flash a smile at her, but then she found herself staring at the back of her head. Two young women Yennefer didn't recognize came into the flat and they all joined Tissaia at the table, taking out laptops and notebooks. With Tissaia's lesson in session, Yennefer sat on the couch and put the TV remote on the coffee table, determined to try and get some work done herself. If only to make a good impression.</p>
<hr/><p>After washing her dishes, Yennefer dropped down onto the couch with her back against the armrest and pulled her backpack into her lap and took out a battered pencil case and a 50-page, A4 hardback sketchbook. Calanthe had given it to her as a gift after Yennefer had impressed her with a sketch of The Lioness that she had made to suggest how they could decorate it for New Years. Since then, besides being left in charge of the decorations for events, Yennefer had started to fill the book with designs for women's clothes. They twenty or so sketches she had done were mostly dresses, but there were also a few tops and skirts thrown into the mix and the odd page of patterns.</p><p>Yennefer had always loved to draw, and it was the only fond memory she had of her mother. At the end of the day, if they had some time to themselves before her father got back from the pub, they would sit by the lake under the willow tree and sketch. Her mother, who had been an art teacher before she married and moved out to the farm, was a good drawer and she used to sketch Yennefer a lot. In those pictures, Yennefer would smile, and her mother would promise her that they would reach that day soon, and Yennefer had believed her right up until the beating that had led her to the bridge. She still had her mother's old sketchbook buried in the back of her closet. It was the one possession she had kept after her mother had passed because she had sold the rest to put a deposit on her flat. She had not dared to touch anything belonging to her father.</p><p>Though she usually listened to music while she worked, Yennefer went without headphones today. There was something comforting about Tissaia's voice and despite understanding less than half of what she was saying to Philippa and the others, Yennefer enjoyed listening to her. If she ever decided to narrate an audiobook or start a podcast, Yennefer knew she would have it play on repeat, whatever the subject matter. She supposed that she could take out her phone and record Tissaia while she was teaching, but that would probably involve crossing a line or two. Unless she asked her? Yennefer shook her head and opened her sketchbook. Creep was not the impression she wanted to give.</p><p>She was finishing her second pattern idea for a dress that she had created an outline when she heard people getting up from the table. Yennefer checked her phone and realized that she had been drawing for almost an hour with stopping; she was not usually this productive. She put her pencil behind her ear and massaged her hand while she watched the two women that she didn't know pack up and leave. Then, she looked at Tissaia and noticed her walking towards her.</p><p>"Are you an artist then?" she said, standing at the other end of the sofa.</p><p>"Sort of," Yennefer said. "I'm a designer, or I'd like to be."</p><p>"May I see?"</p><p>The smile froze on Yennefer's face. "Sure."</p><p>Tissaia stepped forward and Yennefer handed over her sketchbook. She swung her legs down and sat up and watched Tissaia's nose wrinkle when she looked at the sofa. Yennefer couldn't blame her. What you could see was disgusting, but what you couldn't was undoubtedly worse. After a moment of thought, Tissaia perched right on the edge of the cushion beside Yennefer and opened her sketchbook. She spent a few minutes going through the pages and when she looked up, Yennefer realized that she had been staring at her.</p><p>"These are impressive," Tissaia said, very matter-of-factly.</p><p>Still, Yennefer smiled. "Thank you."</p><p>"Have you shown any of your work to potential employers?"</p><p>"No, I haven't."</p><p>"I think you should," Tissaia said, handing back the sketchbook. "Your portfolio is a little small, but your work is solid, and it is clear you have a good eye. I imagine that anyone in the industry who knows what they're doing would be eager to give you an apprenticeship, at the very least."</p><p>"You think so?"</p><p>"Yes, otherwise I wouldn't have said so."</p><p>This time, Yennefer was sure that she saw Tissaia smile at her. It was small and sweet, but extended to her eyes and Yennefer was captivated by how remarkably sincere it looked.</p><p>"But there is one slight problem," Tissaia said. Yennefer's heart dropped. "Your measurements are not accurate."</p><p>That, she already knew. "I never was any good at maths."</p><p>"I could help you."</p><p>"Really? I'd like that, but I don't want to waste your time." Yennefer smiled nervously and rubbed her thumb against the edge of a page. "I bet you have more interesting and important things to be doing that teaching me maths I should have learned at school."</p><p>Yennefer felt someone lightly touch her and looked up. Tissaia's hand was on her arm.</p><p>"Teaching is never a waste of time," she said.</p><p>"But you told Phil that-"</p><p>"That's different," said Tissaia. "They should have gone to their professors for help, and they asked for my assistance, I didn't offer it."</p><p>Yennefer nodded slowly and tapped her fingers against the book. She was embarrassed that Tissaia had noticed that she struggled with simple maths and yet, unlike other people, Philippa and Istredd immediately coming to mind, she had been kind about it. Still, Yennefer was hesitant about accepting her help. She didn't want to look any more stupid than she already felt. But then again, wouldn't it be more foolish, and rude, to reject the help that Tissaia was offering? Besides, a private lesson was as good an excuse as any to spend more time with the woman that had saved her life.</p><p>"When can we get started?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"Whenever you're ready."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>After those first two angsty and heavy chapters I'm pleased to say that we have a few nice and fluffy chapters coming :) So, who is ready for a maths lesson next update?</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Taking Measurements</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They sat down at the dining table with Philippa and Tissaia opened the sketchbook. She outlined how to correctly work out the measurements that Yennefer needed and then explained points where Yennefer had gone wrong. When Yennefer said that she understood the concept, Tissaia took the first three designs in her book (two dresses and a top) and walked her through the steps. Then, she handed the sketchbook and notepad to Yennefer and guided her through the next two pages. After four or five designs, Tissaia stopped commenting unless she saw Yennefer make a mistake, and they worked through the whole sketchbook. When they reached the last design everything in the book had been corrected, and Yennefer had learnt how to use geometry and fractions to create patterns and how to work out how much fabric she needed, among other things.</p>
<p>"I can't thank you enough for this," said Yennefer after they had finished.</p>
<p>She went to close her sketchbook slash maths exercise book, but Tissaia pushed it back open.</p>
<p>"We're not done yet," she said. "The last design in your book doesn't have any measurements. I want to see you complete them."</p>
<p>"Okay."</p>
<p>Yennefer flicked to the back of her sketchbook where she kept a loose scrap of paper that contained the measurements for a list of people she had measured before, such as Philippa. She went down the list, looking for one she hadn't used in a while, and noticed Tissaia peering over her shoulder.</p>
<p>"Pick someone from the list that you haven't used before," she said.</p>
<p>"I can't, I've used them all."</p>
<p>"Do you have a measuring tape?"</p>
<p>That was not a question Yennefer has been expecting. "Yes," she said. She kept it in the same bag as her sketchbook and pencils. "Why?"</p>
<p>"You're going to take my measurements and use them," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>And that was how Yennefer ended up with the width of Tissaia's waist written in the back of her book. Having her hands centimetres from Tissaia's breasts and feeling her hot breath against her skin was not how Yennefer had pictured their lesson going, but she wasn't one to complain. When Tissaia took off her heels Yennefer had to bite back a smile. At a measly five foot one and a half, Tissaia was adorably tiny, but she knew better than to voice as much. She couldn't imagine that a young woman like her appreciated being thought of as cute. Tissaia, however, noticed how the corner of her lips were quivering and rolled her eyes at Yennefer, muttering something about 'this is why I always wear heels', but she didn't look particularly offended. After Yennefer had all the measurements written down on her piece of paper, they sat back at the table. Tissaia didn't say anything while Yennefer worked, but she noticed her eyes following the flick of her pencil.</p>
<p>Yennefer checked her calculations twice and put down her pencil. "How did I do?"</p>
<p>"Good," said Tissaia looking up from the page. "I can't see any mistakes."</p>
<p>"How is it," said Yennefer, leaning back in her chair, "that in less than two hours you've taught me more maths than school ever did."</p>
<p>"Mainstream education isn't for everyone."</p>
<p>"That's a very diplomatic answer," said Philippa. It was the first time she had spoken since Yennefer had accepted Tissaia's help. "Have you ever considered a career in politics?"</p>
<p>"No," said Tissaia. "I've found that politicians rarely make for pleasant company."</p>
<p>"Funny, I've heard people say the same about lawyers too."</p>
<p>"Then you clearly spend too much time in the company of those that need them."</p>
<p>Philippa clenched her jaw and, after a pause, turned back to her laptop and continue tapping away.</p>
<p>Tissaia looked back at Yennefer, her expression noticeably less stern. "Unless you have any more questions, I have reading I need to complete for tomorrow."</p>
<p>Yennefer paused, but she couldn't think of anything to ask. She stood up while Tissaia packed her things and then walked her to the top of the stairs and watched her walk to the front door. Tissaia opened it and looked over her shoulder at Yennefer as she stood in the doorframe.</p>
<p>"Think about what I said regarding your portfolio," she said. "I know you have with it takes to get your designs on a model one day."</p>
<p>Yennefer put her hands in her pocket and shuffled her feet. Tissaia sounded so certain that she wasn't sure how to respond. She had more faith in Yennefer's skills than anyone ever had, including herself.</p>
<p>"I… Thank you," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia watched her for a moment. "You trusted me once," she said, "why not trust me again?"</p>
<p>And with that, Tissaia shut the door behind her and left Yennefer staring after her at the top of the stairs for the second time that week.</p>
<hr/>
<p>When Yennefer went back into the flat, she caught Philippa looking at her with the trace of a smirk on her lips. Yennefer couldn't help herself, she bit.</p>
<p>"What?" she said.</p>
<p>"You've never let anyone help you with your measurements before, not even Triss," said Philippa.</p>
<p>"So?"</p>
<p>"So why accept Tissaia's help? You hardly know her."</p>
<p>Yennefer crossed her arms over her chest. "Because she's a good teacher."</p>
<p>"That can't be the only reason."</p>
<p>"Perhaps not, but it's the only one you're going to get."</p>
<p>Yennefer picked her things up from the table and sat on the sofa. She opened up her sketchbook and tried to come up with a new pattern that she might use on her blank dress, but whatever creative fever had taken her earlier appeared reluctant to come back. After staring at the page for several minutes, Yennefer threw her head back over the armrest.</p>
<p>"Phil," she said.</p>
<p>There was a pause, then she heard Philippa stop typing. "Yes?"</p>
<p>"Do you know much about her, Tissaia, I mean?"</p>
<p>"No, not really."</p>
<p>"What can you tell me?"</p>
<p>"You know, people typically get to know someone by asking them questions."</p>
<p>Yennefer sat up and leant on the back of the sofa with her elbows. "Yes, but Tissaia isn't here and she doesn't have any social media, so I'm asking you."</p>
<p>Philippa raised one finely pencilled eyebrow. "Exactly when did you take up stalking and should I be worried?" she said.</p>
<p>"I just want to know a little bit about the woman that saved my life. Is that too much to ask?"</p>
<p>Philippa sighed and pushed down the screen of her laptop. "When it comes to Tissaia, yes. She likes to keep to herself. I honestly don't know anything about her, except that she's an infuriatingly perfect student who's had a very privileged upbringing, which only makes her more insufferable."</p>
<p>Yennefer hummed thoughtfully. If even Philippa didn't know much about her, then Tissaia had to be the most closely guarded person Yennefer had ever met.</p>
<p>"Perhaps that's why she doesn't spend time with anyone on the course," Philippa continued. "She thinks we're beneath her."</p>
<p>"I don't believe that. Why would she help us if she thought that?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Because philanthropy looks good on privileged people."</p>
<p>"You just don't like her because she doesn't put up with any of your crap."</p>
<p>"I never said I didn't like her," said Philippa.</p>
<p>"Your actions say otherwise," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"I was only trying to get a rise out of her because-"</p>
<p>"You're a sadist."</p>
<p>Philippa shrugged and took a sip of coffee. "True, and because I don't like being ignored or having someone steal the attention of my guests."</p>
<p>Yennefer snorted. "Is that jealousy I hear? It suits you."</p>
<p>"Hardly, you're welcome to her. Besides," Philippa said, the smile that had been playing around the corner of her mouth slipping away, "I think you would be good for each other."</p>
<p>"What do you mean?"</p>
<p>Philippa waved away Yennefer's question and her mouth curved back into a smile that could not have been more different from Tissaia's.</p>
<p>"Oh," she said, "I'm sure you'll work it out."</p>
<p>Philippa pulled her screen up, and Yennefer lay back down on the sofa and turned to the back of her sketchbook. Tissaia's measurements were on the bottom of the list, and while she looked at them, she remembered her conversation with Calanthe and swore under her breath. She had gotten Tissaia's size, but not her phone number, and she certainly wasn't going to ask Philippa for it.</p>
<hr/>
<p>The street was still pretty busy considering the late hour, with people drifting between closing shops, restaurants, pubs and bars. She liked to view this time as the calm before the storm. The quiet and lazy spell that started when the streets began to go dark and ended when the students and other rowdy drinkers descended on the city centre.</p>
<p>Yennefer let her head drift in the clouds while her feet carried her along a well-known and laid in course to The Lioness. She was thinking about the blank dress that she had used Tissaia's measurements for and talking to herself about a pattern and colours that might suit it. She felt that she was getting close to the final product when someone interrupted her creative flow.</p>
<p>"Yenna. Yenna, wait."</p>
<p>Yennefer turned her head to the side and saw Istredd get up from a bench and start walking towards her. She looked ahead and picked up the pace, but he soon caught up with her and stepped into her path, holding his hands up.</p>
<p>"Please, just give me a minute," he said.</p>
<p>"No, I need to get to work," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She stepped around him, rotating her torso so that her back was facing him when she went past. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Istredd fall into step beside her.</p>
<p>"I've been trying to call you all day," said Istredd. Yennefer knew that, of course. Her phone had told her that she'd had six missed calls and two voicemails before she had turned it off. "I was worried about you."</p>
<p>"Well," she said without looking at him, "now that you've seen I'm fine, you can go."</p>
<p>"Not until you listen to what I have to say."</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped abruptly and Istredd walked into her line of sight. The Lioness was a few metres down the street and Yennefer had noticed their bouncer and Calanthe's husband, Eist, standing outside having a smoke. She waved at him until he waved back, and then she turned her attention to Istredd, who was looking sideways at the door to the bar.</p>
<p>"Fine, but make it quick," she said</p>
<p>"I wanted to apologise," said Istredd. "What I did yesterday was completely out of line and I'm sorry. It should never have happened."</p>
<p>Yennefer pressed her lips together and stared at him.</p>
<p>"Yennefer, please," Istredd said as he ran a hand through his hair. "I've waited out here for hours trying to catch you on your way to work. Can't you see that I'm trying to make amends? Why are you being so stubborn? What else would you have me say?"</p>
<p>"Nothing," said Yennefer. "Your words don't mean anything unless you can back them up."</p>
<p>"What do you mean?"</p>
<p>"How do I know this won't happen again?"</p>
<p>Istredd paused. "Because it won't, I promise."</p>
<p>"That's not enough."</p>
<p>Yennefer brushed past Istredd and started walking across the street to The Lioness.</p>
<p>"You're making a mistake," Istredd called after her. "You know you won't ever find anyone as good as me."</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped and Istredd stepped in front of her. Over his shoulder, she noticed that Eist had started walking over to them. She shook her head slightly and he stopped, but he didn't take his eyes off them.</p>
<p>"Don't give up on us, Yennefer," said Istredd. "It won't get any better than this. I'm willing to change for you if you give me a second chance. After everything I've done for you, don't I deserve that?"</p>
<p>Yennefer studied his face carefully while he waited for her reply. She believed that he was sorry, that he hadn't meant to hurt her, and she had to admit that she had provoked him. If she hadn't kept pushing him, then maybe he wouldn't have snapped. It wasn't all his fault. Besides, he wouldn't have chased after her if he didn't care. She knew that there were plenty of women who worked at the museum that wanted him, and who were smart and educated like he was, but he had chosen her. He wanted her, despite what he could have had instead.</p>
<p>"Okay," she said.</p>
<p>Istredd smiled and took a step towards her, moving into her personal space. He brought his hands near her face and waited for Yennefer to give her consent before kissing her gently on the lips and then on her forehead. When they broke apart, Istredd carefully pulled her towards him and wrapped his arms around her.</p>
<p>"Will you come home tonight?" he asked, his voice muffled by her hair.</p>
<p>"No, not tonight." Istredd's arms went slack around her and she leant back to place a hand on his cheek. "But I'll be back when you get home from work tomorrow. Okay?"</p>
<p>"Okay."</p>
<p>They kissed again and Istredd watched her from the middle of the street as she briskly walked past Eist and into The Lioness. For once, she hoped that Calanthe had decided to take the night off. She didn't want Eist snitching on her tonight.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yennefer likes tiny Tissaia.</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Family Reservations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nothing eventful happened for the rest of October. Yennefer moved back into the flat that she shared with Istredd and besides a few small arguments, things were good between them. He had even refrained from commenting on the amount of time that she was spending with her sketchbook. She had added several designs to her portfolio since she had spoken to Tissaia, making the past two weeks the most productive weeks of her life to date. Tissaia's words had given her the boost that Yennefer supposed she needed. It was the first time that her work had been validated by someone who's opinion she knew she could trust.</p>
<p>On the first Friday of November, Yennefer received a visit from her youngest friend at the care home, Triss Merigold. It was her seventeenth birthday that weekend, and she had decided to spend it in Gors Velen with her care sisters, meaning Yennefer, Philippa and Sabrina. Triss was lean, doe-eyed, and impossibly perky, especially considering her lot in life. She had thick chestnut curls and a freckled complexion and dressed like she was a Cath Kidston model.</p>
<p>They collected Triss from the coach station in the early afternoon and, seeing as it was her special weekend, allowed her to choose where they would go to eat, a power rarely shared with their youngest sister. They made their way to the city centre and a restaurant called the Sushi Platter. It wasn't a surprising choice, Triss had always been partial to fish, but when they arrived Yennefer was taken aback by the size of the queue. It led out the front door and into the street, running almost the entire left side of the building. Raw fish was a more popular food choice that she had thought.</p>
<p>"Can someone please explain to me why we didn't make a reservation?" Philippa asked after they had been standing in line for ten minutes.</p>
<p>"Because the Sushi Platter doesn't do reservations. I checked," said Sabrina.</p>
<p>She was the second eldest care sister, beating Yennefer by a few months, and had moved in with Philippa a few months ago ready to start her journalism degree at Aretuza. Sabrina was medium-height, blonde and very photogenic. Her hair was cut short a few inches below her ears and her face was always made-up according to the current trend.</p>
<p>"Why don't we go somewhere else?" Philippa said to Triss. "This queue is absurd."</p>
<p>Triss leant backwards and looked up the line to the door. "Well, I suppose-"</p>
<p>"No," said Yennefer. "Triss said she wanted to eat here, so we are eating here."</p>
<p>Philippa frowned at her. "They will have run out of sushi by the time we make it inside," she said.</p>
<p>"Come on, Phil," said Yennefer. "Seeing as you didn't buy Triss anything for her birthday, why don't you offer her a little patience instead?"</p>
<p>"Don't be silly, you know I haven't any to give."</p>
<p>Yennefer tuned out as Philippa and Sabrina started arguing over where they could go instead, with poor Triss predictably caught in the middle. Her mind wandered idly and she was thinking about what she might wear when they went out tomorrow when Sabrina poked her in the ribs.</p>
<p>"What was that for?" she said, slapping Sabrina's hand away.</p>
<p>Sabrina inclined her head to the side, and Yennefer turned around. Tissaia was standing outside the queue, and Yennefer guessed that she had been trying to get her attention and apologised for not noticing her.</p>
<p>"Don't worry about it," said Tissaia. "I think I might have tuned out as well if I had to endure Philippa's incessant quarrelling."</p>
<p>Sabrina laughed. "I don't know who this person is," she said, "but I like her already."</p>
<p>Yennefer took that as her queue. "Tissaia, these are my other two care sisters, Sabrina and Triss."</p>
<p>Triss waved at Tissaia who nodded politely in return.</p>
<p>"May I presume you are waiting for a table?" said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Yes," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Then come with me."</p>
<p>Yennefer and the others followed Tissaia along the queue and inside the restaurant. At the entrance, one of the staff, who must have been responsible for seating people, turned to Tissaia with a smile.</p>
<p>"Miss Lawrence," he said, "a pleasure to see you again. Would you like your usual table?"</p>
<p>"Yes please," said Tissaia, "and I have company with me today."</p>
<p>Yennefer saw the waiter look over Tissaia's shoulder at them with mild surprise. "Excellent," he said, returning his attention to Tissaia and then turning around. "James." A young, fair-faced man with short ginger hair came up to them. "Please take Miss Lawrence and her guests to conference room one."</p>
<p>They followed James across the restaurant and through a set of double doors that were labelled staff only. There was an open door on the right that led to the kitchen and a set of stairs straight ahead that they climbed to the second floor. They walked out into a corridor with various doors labelled as different numbered conference rooms, and the waiter opened the first on the right. The room was rather sparse, containing a single rectangular table with a bench on either side that could probably fit ten people apiece, as long as you didn't mind brushing shoulders. On the far side of the room opposite the door was a screen and a stand where you could plug a laptop in.</p>
<p>Tissaia sat down with remarkable grace, considering how high she had to lift her legs to get them over the bench, and sat on the side of the table facing the windows. She gestured for Yennefer to join her, which she did, and Sabrina, Triss and Philippa seated themselves on the other side. The waiter gave them each a menu and promised to come for their orders in a few minutes.</p>
<p><em>"</em>I thought you said that they didn't do reservations," Philippa said to Sabrina, leaning forwards to see past Triss, who was sat in the middle.</p>
<p>"They don't," said Tissaia. "You can book the rooms on this floor for conferences and business meetings, but they don't use them during the day."</p>
<p>Philippa sat back and lowered her menu. "Then would you care to explain why we are in here and how you can get in without queuing?"</p>
<p>Triss sighed. "Phil…"</p>
<p>"Yes?"</p>
<p>"Can't you just be grateful that she helped us get a table."</p>
<p>"Oh, I am grateful," Philippa said, flashing Tissaia an obnoxiously false smile, "but I'm curious too and I know that I'm not the only one." She looked at Yennefer, and Tissaia followed her gaze.</p>
<p>"My family own shares in the restaurant," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>It was a rather simple answer, and Yennefer was beginning to understand why Philippa had said there wasn't much about Tissaia to tell. It seemed as though getting her to talk about herself was like trying to pull teeth.</p>
<p>"And that comes with certain privileges, I see," said Philippa, gesturing to their private room.</p>
<p>"Evidently," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>That was the point that James the waiter decided to re-enter the room with their drinks and started taking their orders. When he left, Yennefer made a point of engaging Tissaia in conversation before Philippa could kick off round two.</p>
<p>"Do you come here often?" she asked.</p>
<p>"A few times a week," said Tissaia. "I come here to eat and study when the university libraries get too busy."</p>
<p>"Oh, we're not disturbing you, are we?" Triss asked.</p>
<p>"It's fine," said Tissaia, looking up from the table where she had been arranging her chopsticks. "I needed a break."</p>
<p>"I suppose we should thank you for letting us join you," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"There's no need," said Tissaia. "I'm pleased to have some company for a change, even if you did have to bring Philippa with you."</p>
<p>Yennefer laughed. "I hope a meal with us will be worth suffering her presence."</p>
<p>Tissaia looked at her and smiled. "I'm sure it will be."</p>
<p>The food arrived a few minutes later and for the most part, Tissaia remained silent and listened to their conversation. Triss filled them in on the latest news from the care home and then started talking about school and her first year of A-levels. Tissaia stepped in when Triss moved on to talk about university and the courses that she was looking at and recommended that Triss considered taking a degree in nursing or medicine. It was a good suggestion, Yennefer thought, because not only did Triss love science, but she also had the perfect disposition to be a healer. Tissaia had a good judge of character.</p>
<p>But that was about all she learned about her saviour because, in spite of Philippa's best attempts, or perhaps because of them, she wasn't able to wrangle any more personal information out of Tissaia than she had already divulged. She did, however, partly elaborate on her family background, explaining that they had shares in a variety of business within and outside the city, confirming Philippa's belief that her family were exceptionally well off. One of the investments that the Lawrence's had under their belt was a law firm that had a branch in Vengerberg, which is how Tissaia had ended up with Yennefer on the bridge that day. She had been working there on a summer placement, and Yennefer was about to ask her whether she would work there after graduation when Tissaia announced that it was time for her to go.</p>
<p>"You'll have to excuse me," she said, pushing her plate away, "but I must be leaving."</p>
<p>Yennefer dropped the piece of sushi she had been holding between her chopsticks. "Really. So soon?"</p>
<p>"I'm afraid so. I have studying to do."</p>
<p>"Don't you always? It seems to be the only hobby that you have," said Philippa.</p>
<p>"And it's a good use of my time," said Tissaia. "Perhaps you should give it a try."</p>
<p>Phillipa flicked her hands, waving her chopsticks about while she talked. "But then who would help to keep the city's bar and clubs afloat? If I put all my effort into studying, as you do, then Yennefer might be put out of work."</p>
<p>"I'm sure that The Lioness will endure without your chaotic patronage, Phil," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"The Lioness, is that where you work?" said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Yes, behind the bar."</p>
<p>"Does Calanthe still run the place?"</p>
<p>"She does. Do you know her?" Yennefer asked, remembering Calanthe's reaction to Tissaia's name.</p>
<p>"She's… a family friend."</p>
<p>Tissaia stood up, put on her jacket and collected her things. She adjusted her clothes and bag, and Yennefer shot Philippa a warning glance. Philippa smirked at her but kept her mouth shut</p>
<p><em>"</em>I'll inform the staff that you are still up here, I'm sure they won't mind if you stay a while longer," Tissaia said when she was ready.</p>
<p>"Thank you again for getting us a table," said Triss.</p>
<p>"My pleasure. I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay in Gors Velen."</p>
<p>The door had barely closed itself behind Tissaia when Philippa started commenting on her behaviour. Sabrina nodded along and watched Yennefer out of the corner of her eye while Triss sat with her head in her hands. After a few seconds, Yennefer excused herself, saying that she needed to use the bathroom, and left before Triss had the chance to try and tag along with her. She took the stairs two at a time and almost bumped into a waiter as he came out of the kitchen. She burst through the door and saw Tissaia standing to the side with the waiter that had served them. Yennefer waited until she had finished paying for her meal and then caught her attention, but rather than saying anything, she stared at Tissaia and started to second-guess what she had planned to ask.</p>
<p>Tissaia raised an eyebrow at her, the trace of a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth. "Is there something I can help you with?"</p>
<p>Yennefer tucked her hands in her trouser pockets. Now she had to ask, otherwise, she would look even more the fool.</p>
<p>"Yes," she said. "I was wondering if you'd like to go out to dinner with me at the weekend. I wanted to thank you properly for what you did back in Vengerberg."</p>
<p>"You don't need to."</p>
<p>"But I want to," said Yennefer. "So, can I take you out?"</p>
<p>"Not this weekend, but I'm available next Saturday."</p>
<p>Yennefer smiled. "If you give me your phone number then I can text you the details."</p>
<p>Tissaia agreed and they exchanged contact details. Then, she turned to leave. "I'll see you soon."</p>
<p>"Before you go," said Yennefer, "I have to ask. Was it worth it?"</p>
<p>"Pardon?"</p>
<p>"Suffering Philippa's company?"</p>
<p>For the first time since they met, Tissaia laughed. The sound was so soft and quiet that Yennefer nearly missed it, and just like her smile, Yennefer knew that she meant it. That she always would.</p>
<p>"Definitely," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer watched Tissaia walk out the door and then went to re-join the others upstairs. Sabrina and Triss were deep in conversation regarding some romance series that they had been watching on Netflix and barely glanced in her direction when Yennefer sat back down.</p>
<p>Philippa, however, wasn't looking anywhere else. "Did you get what you wanted from her?" she asked.</p>
<p>"I did," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Tomorrow?"</p>
<p>"Next Saturday."</p>
<p>"Good," said Philippa, taking a sip of her mango smoothie and holding the glass near her face. "That gives you time to prepare."</p>
<p>"I'm not going on some heist."</p>
<p>"Still, it could be difficult. I would come up with a good plan if I were you."</p>
<p>"Sure, I'll get right one that."</p>
<p>Philippa put her smoothie down and leant across the table. "Joke if you like," she said, "but I'm warning you, you don't want to mess this up."</p>
<p>Yennefer stared back at her. "I won't," she said, and pulled Philippa's drink across the table, finishing it.</p>
<p>They stayed in the conference room for another half an hour, talking idly and making plans for the weekend. When they went downstairs to pay, they discovered that Tissaia had covered the bill, and on their way out, with Triss and Sabrina trailing behind them, Philippa warned Yennefer that she better not fuck up next Saturday, for the sake of all their purses.</p>
<hr/>
<p>After lunch, they went on a shopping spree in the city centre that lasted till the late afternoon. They parted ways near the university campus, with Triss going back to Philippa and Sabrina's flat and Yennefer returning to her own. On the way, Yennefer disposed of the plastic carrier bag she had been holding and put the top that she had brought for her plans with Tissaia next Saturday in her bag.</p>
<p>Istredd was watching a history documentary on the TV about Gors Velen when she entered the flat and dropped down onto the armchair. She pulled out her phone and heard Istredd turn the volume down on the TV.</p>
<p>"How was lunch?" he asked.</p>
<p>"Good," she said.</p>
<p>"Where did you go?"</p>
<p>"The Sushi Platter."</p>
<p>Istredd looked sideways at her. "That's an expensive place to eat. Why didn't you go somewhere else?"</p>
<p>Yennefer shrugged. "The prices weren't that bad."</p>
<p>"That's not what I heard."</p>
<p>"Don't worry about it, Istredd. I didn't end up paying in the end."</p>
<p>Istredd sat up and rubbed his brow. "Then who did pay? Please tell me you don't owe Philippa money now," he said.</p>
<p>"I don't. Tissaia covered the bill."</p>
<p>Istredd tapped his fingers against the hard shell of the TV remote. "You never told me you were meeting Tissaia."</p>
<p>"Because I wasn't," Yennefer said, staring blindly at her phone. "We ran into her at the restaurant and she helped get us a good table."</p>
<p>"Do you plan on seeing her again?"</p>
<p>"Yes."</p>
<p>"When?"</p>
<p>"Next weekend."</p>
<p>"Good," said Istredd, sinking back into the sofa. "She sounds like a good influence, and you could do with a few more of those."</p>
<p>Yennefer swiped onto the trending tab on Twitter and clicked on the first thing on the list without reading what it was.</p>
<p>"What will you two do?" Istredd asked.</p>
<p>"Not sure yet," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Why don't you try a find a nice restaurant to take her to before you go to work?"</p>
<p>"Sure."</p>
<p>Yennefer got up from the armchair and picked up her laptop from the table. She carried it into the bedroom and logged in, but then put the device down on the bed and unlocked her phone, closing Twitter and opening Instagram. She had been tagged in a photo and clicked on the notification. Triss, who fancied herself as an amateur photographer, had taken a few pictures of them eating at the Sushi Platter. There were two pictures of them as a group and a few pictures of either one or two of them.</p>
<p>Tissaia was in a couple of the uploads, looking as though she was posing for a school photo or formal family portrait, though she looked gorgeous in them, nonetheless. She had initially refused to have her picture taken, but Triss had persuaded her and had thoughtfully sought her opinion regarding the photos that she could keep and upload. Yennefer kept scrolling down Triss' feed and spotted a picture that she hadn't known Triss had taken, but which Tissaia must have approved of. It was a photo of them sitting next to each other at the table, staring at each other and smiling like they were the only people in the room. Tissaia appeared to be a lot more at ease here, possibly because Triss had taken this in the moment without either of them realizing it.</p>
<p>It was a nice photo, and Yennefer saved it onto her phone, alongside the picture of them as a group and set the latter as her phone's background. After that, Yennefer played some music on her laptop and fetched her sketchbook and pencils from her backpack and started to draw.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yennefer and Tissaia jumping ahead to meeting the family. And I hope that it doesn't show that I do not own Instagram xD</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. New Experiences</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It seemed to take longer than normal for next Saturday to arrive, but eventually, Yennefer found herself standing outside Svago, a quaint Italian restaurant hidden in one of the city centre's arcades, waiting for Tissaia. It was ten past six in the evening, making Yennefer exactly twenty minutes early instead of her typical fifteen minutes late. When she ran out of interesting posts to read and view on social media, Yennefer put her phone in her jacket pocket and adjusted the chain of her necklace so that the clasp was at the back and the tiny silver bird resting between in the dip between her collar bones. She was wearing the purple, sleeveless blouse she had brought last week under a black leather jacket with simple heels and tight, dark skinny jeans.</p><p>As Yennefer had expected, Tissaia greeted her outside the restaurant before half six, dressed in a short trench coat, a plain white top tucked into her jeans and another pair of outrageously tall heels. They went inside and sat down at their reserved table, which was tucked away in the corner because Yennefer had presumed Tissaia would prefer the privacy of a secluded spot, and ordered drinks, a glass of wine for Tissaia and prosecco for Yennefer, before looking at the menu. The restaurant was decorated in tones of brown and cream, with dark wooden floors and lightly painted walls that were broken up by wooden panels made from planks of several different shades. When the waiter came back with their drinks, they both ordered pasta and then slipped into conversation.</p><p>Tissaia asked her about her childhood after the bridge, and Yennefer found it remarkably easy to talk to her about her troubled past. She shared details that she normally regarded as tightly kept secrets and told Tissaia things that Istredd and some of the kids she had grown up with at the care home didn't know about her. With Tissaia, she felt comfortable telling the truth and providing details, but she could not work out whether it was because Tissaia had already had a glimpse of what her childhood had been like, or if Yennefer could talk to her because she was honest and straight-forward.</p><p>It was a nice change to talk to someone who didn't feel the need to apologise and tell her how sorry they were for what had happened to her in the past, someone who didn't handle her with great pity and care as though she were made of glass, and who treated her the same as they had done before they knew her life story. It wasn't that Tissaia didn't care, Yennefer could read the subtle hints and tell that her story had moved Tissaia, but she kept her feelings mostly to herself and didn't try to constantly reassure her. Instead, Tissaia let Yennefer talk and listened well, squeezing her hand and offering a smile at all the right moments, and never interrupting her flow.</p><p>And when Yennefer had finished talking about herself, and their pasta bowls were almost empty, there were no awkward pauses, they kept talking. Yennefer asked Tissaia questions about her past, and now that they were alone, she was more forthcoming with her answers, hopefully feeling as at ease as Yennefer did.</p><p>She told Yennefer how she had lived in Gors Velen all her life, but that she had spent a lot of her childhood in boarding schools in Oxenfurt, which meant that she'd had a very expensive and thorough education. Yennefer learnt that she had no brothers or sisters, but that she lived with a handful of younger cousins and aunts, uncles, and grandparents in the house her mother and father owned on the outskirts of the city. She admitted that she had a very privileged and wealthy background and did not come off as snobbish or condescending when she talked about it. It was something that Tissaia was grateful for, but not necessarily proud of, and she did not mention anything that could have made her sound as though she were bragging unless Yennefer asked for details.</p><p>After they had gotten their childhood and origin stories out of the way their conversation jumped forwards in time.</p><p>"Would you like to have a career as a designer?" Tissaia asked.</p><p>"Definitely" said Yennefer. "It would be great to earn a living doing something that I love."</p><p>Tissaia finished her last mouthful of pasta and put her knife and fork together. She pushed her empty plate towards the middle of the table and gently tapped the bottom of the knife so that the cutlery was aligned.</p><p>"Then why haven't you shared your portfolio with anyone?" Tissaia asked.</p><p>Yennefer shrugged. "Because I didn't think that they were good enough," she said, "and I wasn't prepared to get my hopes up just for them to be shot down."</p><p>"Have you always been this fatalistic?" Tissaia asked, half-smiling behind her wine glass.</p><p>"Yes, it's a safe way to live in a world like mine."</p><p>"But not a good one."</p><p>Yennefer paused, chewing on her bottom lip. "No, it isn't," she said. "And I want to change, but you know what they say."</p><p>Tissaia hummed. "Old habits die hard."</p><p>"And mine is the oldest of habits to break."</p><p>They sat in silence while Yennefer finished her pasta. After she was done, Yennefer watched Tissaia and tried not to smile when she deliberately pushed her empty pasta bowel into hers, knocking her cutlery out of line. Tissaia looked down at the mess and then at Yennefer. She frowned and slowly shook her head, but Yennefer saw the corner of her mouth quirk up as she leant across the table to put their dirty dishes in a small and organized pile.</p><p>"What about you?" said Yennefer. "Why choose to study law?"</p><p>"Because it is a highly respectable degree," said Tissaia.</p><p>Yennefer raised an eyebrow. "You make it sound as though it wasn't something you wanted to take."</p><p>Tissaia finished her wine and put the glass on the table, moving it around for a few seconds and then looking up. "I wanted to get a good degree, and a good job because of it," she said. "The subject matter wasn't important."</p><p>"Not even when you have to study it for six years?"</p><p>Yennefer thought she heard Tissaia sigh. "No, not even then, but everything worked out," she said. "I've enjoyed taking law. It was a good choice."</p><p>"What do you plan to do after you graduate?"</p><p>"I'll be working for a law firm that my family are involved with."</p><p>"The one you had your summer placement with?"</p><p>"Yes, but I'll be based in Oxenfurt."</p><p>Yennefer nodded and tried not to look too pleased to hear that Tissaia wouldn't be moving that far.</p><p>They talked for another few minutes about Tissaia's placement and then got ready to leave. Yennefer insisted on paying, reminding Tissaia that the meal was supposed to be a thank you, and Tissaia settled for leaving a tip. They headed out of the restaurant side by side, naturally gravitating closer together than they had before, and Yennefer realized that she wasn't ready for their dinner date to end. Tonight, she had caught a glimpse of what Tissaia was really like, the young woman behind the mask of etiquette, control, and good impressions, and she was craving for more.</p><p>She saw Tissaia look over her shoulder down the street that she had come from and knew that she had to say something quickly if she didn't want to let her go.</p><p>"When was the last time you had fun?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>Tissaia jerked her head around and stared at her for a moment. "Excuse me?" she said.</p><p>Yennefer smiled. She hadn't imagined catching Tissaia off guard, but she guessed that it was a good sign. It meant that Tissaia felt comfortable enough around her to not police her emotions quite so carefully. Or Yennefer hoped that was the case.</p><p>"Phil said you like to study a lot," said Yennefer, "which is fine. But when was the last time you let your hair down? It does come down, doesn't it?"</p><p>Tissaia folded her arms and pretended to look unimpressed. "Yes, Yennefer, it does," she said. "And to answer your question, not since the semester started, if you don't count tonight."</p><p>"Are you doing anything else today?"</p><p>"No."</p><p>"Good," said Yennefer, "then I'm taking you somewhere else."</p><p>She started walking up the street and then turned back to Tissaia, who was still standing outside Svago.</p><p>"And who said that I wanted to go with you?" said Tissaia, cocking her head to the side.</p><p>"You did when you smiled just then."</p><p>Tissaia looked at her with a blank expression. "You're imagining things. How much have you had to drink?"</p><p>"Not nearly enough," said Yennefer. "Come on, we're going, and you will enjoy yourself."</p><p>Tissaia stared at her and just as Yennefer started to worry, she smiled and caught up with her.</p><p>"With confidence like that, I'm surprised you've been too nervous to show off your portfolio," said Tissaia.</p><p>"This isn't confidence, its bravado. Do you like it?"</p><p>"We'll see."</p>
<hr/><p>Yennefer led Tissaia away from the main high street and the brewery quarter and towards the streets that made up the outer limits of the core of Gors Velen. While they walked, Tissaia tried to get Yennefer to tell her where they are going, but she wouldn't give in. Though she could tell that Tissaia was anxious about not knowing what was going on, part of Yennefer wanted to see how far she could push her tonight and to see how willing Tissaia was to let her take the lead. Since Tissaia was still following her, Yennefer took that as a sign that she had to trust her to some degree, and that Tissaia liked her enough to let her push her out of her comfort zone, and she felt her spirits brighten at the thought that she might be winning her over. That Tissaia was willing to let go if it meant spending time with her.</p><p>After they passed The Lioness, Tissaia couldn't keep her hands off her clothes and Yennefer hooked an arm through hers before she could start to make the sleeves of her trench coat fray. Tissaia tensed up at the sudden contact, but before Yennefer had a chance to wonder whether she'd gone too far she felt Tissaia relax. She didn't touch her clothes again until they stopped.</p><p>The neon sign above the two double doors read 'The Vaults' and the bouncer outside checked their IDs and let them through.</p><p>"Is this a bar?" Tissaia asked as they started walking down the stairs.</p><p>"Yes and no," said Yennefer. "You'll see."</p><p>At the bottom of the stairs, they walked through another set of doors at into a large open room. There was a rectangular bar in the middle with curved corners and back to back shelves in the centre that contained the various spirits and poisons you needed to run a bar. Chairs and tables surrounded it and in one corner of the room, there was a DJ booth in the wall and a small dance floor that was currently being used by three unremarkable but very drunk middle-aged men. The rest of the space in was taken up by arcade machines that had mostly been stolen from the seventies and eighties and which stood in stark contrast to the minimalist and smooth decor of the bar.</p><p>Yennefer noticed an empty table on the outskirts of the main drinking area and made for it but stopped when Tissaia pulled on her arm. She was touching her clothes again and her eyes were darting around the room.</p><p>"What's wrong?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"It's nothing," said Tissaia.</p><p>"I don't believe you."</p><p>Tissaia frowned at her and Yennefer stared back. Then, a loud shout from the men on the dance floor made Tissaia flinch.</p><p>"Those men," said Yennefer, "are they making you uncomfortable?"</p><p>"No," said Tissaia. "It's not that."</p><p>"Then what is it?"</p><p>Tissaia looked sideways and fingered her necklace.</p><p>"Tissaia," said Yennefer, and the other woman looked at her. "Why won't you tell me what's wrong? This is ridiculous."</p><p>"Because it's silly, that's why." Yennefer waited and after a few seconds Tissaia gave in. "I'm not a fan of loud noises or crowds, they make me uncomfortable."</p><p>"That's it?"</p><p>Tissaia let go of Yennefer and crossed her arms over her chest. "It's not funny," she said. "This is why I didn't want to say anything."</p><p>"I'm not laughing. It makes a lot of sense," said Yennefer.</p><p>"Does it?"</p><p>"Yes. I've noticed that you like to take in your surroundings and that's difficult when there are a lot of things going on around you. And you don't like people touching you either."</p><p>Tissaia's expression brightened and one corner of her mouth curved into a lopsided smile. "Do you make a habit of spying on people?"</p><p>"Just the good-looking ones," said Yennefer."</p><p>"I can't decide whether to be flattered or alarmed."</p><p>"I'd say a bit of both." Yennefer offered Tissaia her arm. "Come on, let's go in. If things get too much, then we can leave."</p><p>"You wouldn't mind?" Tissaia asked.</p><p>"I want you to have a good time. That's what this evening was about, remember?"</p><p>Tissaia took her arm. "Then what's the plan? I've never been somewhere like this before."</p><p>"Alcohol, change, arcade machines, in that order. Are you ready to give this a try?"</p><p>"Yes, I leave myself in your capable hands."</p><p>They left their coats in the small locker room by the bathroom and Yennefer ordered two cocktails while Tissaia exchanged some notes for coins. Then, they took their drinks and pennies over to the quietest section of The Vaults. Tissaia sipped her cocktail contentedly, pleased with Yennefer's choice, and watched her push a fifty pence piece into a 1981 Donkey Kong game. The objective was to save Princess Peach from Donkey Kong by climbing to the top of the level without getting hit by any of the falling barrels of other hazardous obstacles. After one pound fifty, Yennefer managed to get past the first level and then quickly lost her last life to a stubborn fireball that wouldn't move out of her way.</p><p>Tissaia laughed at her frustration, and Yennefer suggested that she had a go, taking the drink from her hand and nudging her forwards with her elbow. She pushed in a coin and Yennefer laughed into her drink and coughed when Tissaia narrowed her eyes at the machine and complained that Mario hadn't moved when she'd wanted him to. After three pounds Tissaia was still going, adamant about beating the first level, and Yennefer noticed a small crease form between her brows when she concentrated. She smiled to herself and decided that she rather liked this Tissaia, slightly flustered and out of her depth. It felt like her, and not an impression that she was trying to give.</p><p>At four pounds fifty Tissaia had beaten the first and second level, and Yennefer managed to convince her to leave the machine alone before it broke under the weight of her stare. They had a go at a classic pinball machine with all the flashing lights and whirling, and then tried some two-player games. Neither of them managed to work out Mortal Kombat and furiously tapped on the buttons until Tissaia's character pushed Yennefer's into a corner and trapped them there, hitting them every time they got up.</p><p>When round two started Tissaia tried to follow through with her strategy and Yennefer resorted to physical violence to win by holding Tissaia's wrists against the machine and playing with one hand. Tissaia called her a cheater and seemed as equally amused as she was genuinely annoyed. In the third and deciding round, Yennefer tried to do it again, but Tissaia slapped her hand hard and didn't show any signs of guilt or remorse when Yennefer played up the pain. Tissaia took competitions very seriously, as she did most things. After a furious game of Pac Man Battle Royale, which involved up to four players or pac mans moving around the map trying to eat each other, they decided that it would be best to return to single-player.</p><p>Yennefer left Tissaia at Space Invaders and went to get two more drinks, a whisky for herself and a glass of sparkling water for Tissaia and watched the other woman from the bar while she waited to be served. That was how she came to notice that there were two young men, probably in their early twenties, looking at Tissaia. They were sitting in a small lounge area to the left of the Space Invaders machine that had a few racing games and kept looking at each other and then at Tissaia, gesturing towards her. Yennefer jumped and turned around when the bartender tapped her on the shoulder and pushed her drinks towards her.</p><p>She picked them up and started walking back to Tissaia as one of the young men, a guy with short blonde hair and a tight shirt that left nothing to the imagination, got up from his seat. Yennefer pushed her way through the tables around the bar and stood on Tissaia's left side. She saw the man coming up to them and put their drinks on a table between Space Invaders and Asteroids, then stepped up behind Tissaia and wrapped her arms around her waist. Tissaia froze and her game ended.</p><p>"Go along with it," Yennefer whispered.</p><p>She bent her head over Tissaia's shoulder and kissed her on the side of the head, just above her hairline. Tissaia put another coin in the machine and started a new game, and Yennefer glanced to the side and noticed that the young man had gone back to the sofa. When Tissaia's game ended, Yennefer moved round to her left, but kept an arm around her waist, and led Tissaia to the other side of the room after they had picked up their drinks.</p><p>"Would you care to explain what this is about?" Tissaia asked as they walked.</p><p>"I saw two guys looking at you and one of them was coming over," said Yennefer.</p><p>"Are they still looking?"</p><p>Yennefer knew they weren't, but pretended to look over Tissaia's shoulder. "No," she said, and stepped back, removing her arm from Tissaia's waist.</p><p>"What made you think that I couldn't handle them?"</p><p>"Nothing."</p><p>"Then why step in?"</p><p>"Because I don't like to share," said Yennefer. Tissaia raised an eyebrow and Yennefer shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "What?"</p><p>"I didn't realize that my tour guide was also a bodyguard," said Tissaia.</p><p>"It's a complimentary service."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>DATE NIGHT (sort of). I love the idea that Tissaia is quite competitive and I think it suits her character. I'd say I'm a bit of a perfectionist and because of that I like to be good at things which naturally makes me competitive with a lot of things. Oh, and who likes jealous/protective Yennefer defending her fake-girlfriend?</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. False Smiles</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They finished their drinks while playing Rampage and left The Vaults at around nine in the evening. Knowing that the taxis around the city centre would be busy ferrying dinners out and bringing in alcoholics, they decided to walk home and Yennefer escorted Tissaia to her luxury block of flats.</p>
<p>"Was I right?" Yennefer asked when they arrived. "Did you enjoy yourself?"</p>
<p>"Loathe as I am to admit, I did," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Good. Maybe next time you let your hair down, you could actually let it down."</p>
<p>"Why do you have this strange obsession with my hair?" said Tissaia, wrapping a loose strand around her finger. "Are you propositioning me?"</p>
<p>"That depends," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"On what, I wonder?"</p>
<p>"On whether you want me too, of course."</p>
<p>"And if I said that I did."</p>
<p>"I would ask what you were doing tomorrow."</p>
<p>Tissaia's smile faltered and she plucked at the collar of her trench coat. "Then I would have to disappoint you," she said. "I have to attend the unveiling of a new exhibit at the museum."</p>
<p>"You don't want to go?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"I haven't got a choice. I've been asked to represent my family at the event."</p>
<p>"Why?"</p>
<p>Tissaia put her hands in her pocket and put on a smile. "Because the Lawrence's are the museum's most generous donator," she said, "or something along those lines, I believe."</p>
<p>"Maybe I'll see you there. My boyfriend works at the museum," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"That would be nice, but I'm certain that neither the buffet or the company will make up for how dreary the event will be."</p>
<p>"I don't know about that. Besides, I'm sure that Istredd would like me to attend."</p>
<p>He had asked her to similar events before, but she had always declined because she hated formal gatherings. They were dull and tiring, and annoying above all else. But if Tissaia had experienced a piece of her life, then Yennefer thought that it would be fair if she did the same and kept her company through the event.</p>
<p>"Okay," said Tissaia, "but don't say that I didn't try and talk you down."</p>
<p>"No promises," said Yennefer. "I'll see you tomorrow."</p>
<p>"Goodnight, Yennefer. Text me when you get home."</p>
<p>"I will."</p>
<p>Tissaia pulled out her fob for the front door to the building and disappeared through the glass doors and around the corner. After purchasing two bottles of water from a Subway, Yennefer took the long way home and finished her drinks before opening the door to her flat. Istredd was sitting at the dining room table with his laptop and when she had texted Tissaia, Yennefer asked him about the unveiling at the museum. He was glad to hear that she had finally decided to accompany him to one of the events and when he asked her why she'd had a sudden change of heart, she lied and said it was for him. And not for her.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Before they went to sleep, Istredd made Yennefer show him what she wanted to wear to the event and when she failed to produce anything appropriate he decided that they would have to go shopping tomorrow. It was eleven in the morning when Yennefer managed to drag herself out of bed and leave for town. She brought a box of noodles from a noodle bar down her street and ate on the go. Istredd was waiting for her outside the shopping centre and they visited three different stores before finding something that he approved of. The dress he chose was black with thick straps, a tight top that sparkled ever so slightly, and a long flowing skirt that was modestly see-through.</p>
<p>Istredd took the dress home with him when Yennefer assured him that she was capable of buying appropriate heels by herself. She found a pair less than half an hour later and went to the coffee shop where she had met Tissaia to draw for the rest of the afternoon without Istredd looking over her shoulder. When she got back home, Yennefer had a small snack with Istredd and then started to get ready for the event, which started at five in the evening.</p>
<p>They got to the museum on time, despite Yennefer's best efforts, as Istredd put it, and walked up the stone steps, between the pillars, and into the museum's grand lobby. The room was bathed in golden light that reflected off the polished stone floors which were marked with coloured lines corresponding to sections of the museum to help visitors find their way. About a fourth of the room was occupied by the skeleton of a dinosaur that had a long neck and sweeping tail that Yennefer could not remember the name of. Istredd had given her a history lesson about the main parts of the museum and the exhibit when she had been getting ready, but she hadn't listened to a word.</p>
<p>About one hundred people were mingling in the entrance when they arrived and Istredd took her to a group of colleagues, reminding her of their names and their work as they approached. He introduced her and she smiled and asked whether they were excited about the unveiling and then promptly stopped paying attention to the conservation. Instead, she tried to look for Tissaia in the crowd and kept an eye on the door in case she hadn't arrived yet, but she couldn't see her anywhere.</p>
<p>Ten minutes later they said goodbye and Istredd led her to a group of men who were in his department and then took her to his superiors. He was parading her around and showing her off like a prize cow, or a trophy wife, and she wanted to tell him to stop, but she didn't. She knew that it would start an argument, and she didn't want to embarrass Istredd or make him angry.</p>
<p>An hour into the event and Yennefer needed a break from all the smiling, nodding and feigned interest. She excused herself and went to the little girl's room and pretended to powder her nose in the mirror for as long as she could without Istredd questioning what had taken her so long. On her way out of the bathroom, Yennefer got a good look at a part of the second floor that she had not been able to see properly. And, of course, that was where she finally spotted Tissaia standing on the balcony that ran along the walls either side of the entrance lobby. She briefly considered going straight upstairs and greeting her but decided that it would look strange if, as a plus one, she abandoned her date and started walking around the museum by herself, and she didn't want to come across as overly eager. She returned to Istredd's side and waited for him to take her away to display her to another group of colleagues.</p>
<p>"Let's go upstairs," Yennefer said, pulling Istredd's arm gently when they were near the stairs. "I want you to tell me more about the new exhibit and it isn't as crowded up there."</p>
<p>Istredd carried on walking. "I already tried to teach you," he said, "and you forgot."</p>
<p>"I know, and I'm sorry. But I want to try again."</p>
<p>"I'd rather not waste my time."</p>
<p>"Istredd, please," said Yennefer. "I want something to talk with your colleagues about so I'm not stuck listening for the rest of the evening. Besides, don't you want me to impress them?"</p>
<p>"Okay, in a minute," he said.</p>
<p>She was introduced to another group of nameless and unfamiliar faces and endured their company for several agonizingly long minutes before Istredd took her upstairs. She listened to Istredd's lecture and whenever she thought that he wasn't looking she looked across to the other balcony to watch Tissaia. When Istredd finished boring her to death, Yennefer pretended to spot Tissaia and told Istredd that they should talk to her. He agreed but wanted to introduce her to some more of his colleagues first. That was when she decided to let slip why Tissaia was there.</p>
<p>"Why did you never tell me that she was a Lawrence?" said Istredd, pulling Yennefer to one side.</p>
<p>"Because I didn't know what that meant," she said.</p>
<p>"You should have, they're very important people."</p>
<p>"I know that now."</p>
<p>Two people walked past them and Istredd smiled then turned back to Yennefer. "What have you told her about me?"</p>
<p>"Just that you work at the museum," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Good." Istredd held out his arm for her to take. "Let's go, and remember to introduce me properly."</p>
<p>They made their way to Tissaia and stood to the side while she finished her conversation. She was talking with a group of men and women who were all several years her seniors. She was wearing an elegant red dress embroidered with golden thread that had long sleeves and a soft V-neck that came to a point just above her cleavage. Her make-up was heavier than usual but still natural, and her jewellery, a set of dangling ruby earrings and a matching three stones necklace, was bolder and more elaborate than the pieces Yennefer had seen her wear before. Her hair was up as usual but it was decorated with golden flowers and had been tied in a complicated braided bun that she could not have done herself. Yennefer stared at her and Tissaia caught her eye. A few seconds later she detached herself from the group and came over to greet her.</p>
<p>"I'd like you to meet my boyfriend, Istredd Val," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Istredd held out his hand and they shook.</p>
<p>"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Lawrence," he said.</p>
<p>Tissaia smiled at him, and it was bright and charming, and entirely false. "Please, call me Tissaia," she said and turned to Yennefer. "How have you found the event this evening?"</p>
<p>"Educational," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She went to say more, but Istredd cut in.</p>
<p>"I've been telling Yennefer about my work on the new exhibit," he said. "My colleagues and I are very proud of it and we are excited to finally see it open to the public."</p>
<p>"As am I," said Tissaia. "It is a wonderful addition to the museum."</p>
<p>"Thank you, and if I might, I would like to extend my gratitude to you and your family for your support. I would not be able to conduct my work without it."</p>
<p>Tissaia inclined her head and pretended to smile again. "My family and I are honoured to be able to contribute to the museum and to aid your work. We know the value of history and education and are grateful for the services and the exhibits that the museum here in Gors Velen provides."</p>
<p>At that moment, an elderly man stepped next to Tissaia and whispered something in her ear. She pressed her lips together and nodded, and the man stepped back and stood behind her.</p>
<p>"If you'll excuse me, I must go," said Tissaia. "I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening."</p>
<p>Istredd bid her farewell and Tissaia nodded at him then caught Yennefer's eye. For a moment, she thought that she saw Tissaia's usual smile play about her lips before she turned her back on her and took the old man's arm. When Istredd tried to lead her back downstairs, Yennefer said that she needed a little space and that she would join him in a minute. Reluctantly, he left her alone and Yennefer watched Tissaia from across the room while she walked with the elderly gentleman to another group of people and started shaking their hands. Again, Yennefer noticed that they were all adults a lot older than her and, judging by the size of the jewels that they wore and the perfect, tailored fit of their clothes, they came from the same rich and upper-class circles as Tissaia and her family. They were Tissaia's peers, and Yennefer watched her talk with them for a while before heading back to Istredd.</p>
<p>Not once did Yennefer see Tissaia look back at her in all the time that she stared up at her from the bottom floor, and when she helped to unveil the new exhibit she didn't catch her eye or come over to talk. After that, Yennefer complained that she wasn't feeling well and left the event early. She knew that she would get an earful from Istredd about it when he got back, but she didn't care. The argument would be better than staying at the museum and watching Tissaia ignore her. She had gone to that event to keep her company and Tissaia had barely said five words to her the entire time or spent more than a few seconds with her. When Yennefer had been watching her on the balcony, she had never seen her walk away from anyone else nearly as quickly as she had left her alone with Istredd. She was embarrassed to be seen with her, a poor, uneducated and reckless orphan girl who never watched what she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer had been a fool to think that someone like Tissaia would actually like her. Philippa had been right, she was nothing more than Tissaia's charity case.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>It looks like cracks might be forming in their relationship... What was Tissaia doing at the event and why did she not spend it with Yennefer?</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Understanding the Game</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Another week passed slowly for Yennefer, but this time, come Friday, she had nothing exciting to look forward to the next day that would help ease her through another long shift. At a little past seven in the evening, and a few minutes after she had started her shift, Calanthe was already back on her case and hounding her like a bitch in heat, determined to get what she wanted out of Yennefer; an explanation. After the event at the museum and her revelation about Tissaia's motives, Yennefer had been feeling miserable and confused. She wanted to be angry, but she also felt used, unwanted, and upset. She had liked Tissaia and thought that she might have felt the same way, but now she realized that Tissaia had only liked what Yennefer could do for her and the Lawrence's reputation.</p>
<p>At eight in the evening, The Lioness started to fill up with some early Friday punters. Most of the customers that Yennefer served at the bar were office types in fine suits and blouses toasting the end of another week, but there were also some couples and a few young people with books and rucksacks that she guessed were from the university. Philippa sometimes came into The Lioness for a nightcap after a late-night session at the library cramming for an exam or finishing a piece of coursework hours before it was due. Two old men with limp ties asked to be served and Yennefer sent them away with two double vodkas and coke and the started to clean the shelves.</p>
<p>"How did a nice girl like you end up working in a dump like this?"</p>
<p>Yennefer fumbled with the bottle she had been putting back and looked behind her. Tissaia was sitting at the bar. She was smiling at her with her head cocked slightly to one side and, for a moment, caught in her smile, Yennefer lost her way. She forgot why she was angry and upset, and was pleased to see her, and to know that she had come here for her. And then, the moment passed, and she remembered all the things that she was supposed to be feeling, and all the reasons why.</p>
<p>Yennefer turned her back on Tissaia and started moving bottles around. "What are you doing here?" she said to the rack of drinks.</p>
<p>There was a pause. "You invited me, remember?" said Tissaia.</p>
<p>At Svago, after seeing that Tissaia was a generous tipper, Yennefer had suggested that she visited her at The Lioness one evening, but she hadn't expected Tissaia to take her up on the offer. Now, she wished she hadn't.</p>
<p>"What do you want?" Yennefer asked over her shoulder.</p>
<p>Tissaia caught her eye and stared at her, searching her face. Yennefer looked away.</p>
<p>"Is something wrong?" said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"No." Yennefer turned around and crossed her arms. "Do you want a drink or not?"</p>
<p>"Gin and tonic."</p>
<p>Yennefer snatched the bottle of gin from the shelf and kicked the door to the fridge shut after taking out the tonic. She kept her head down and looked at her hands while she made the drink and after pouring it into a glass, she slid it across the bar, spilling it. Tissaia didn't pick it up or try to clean the mess and took a ten-pound note out of her wallet without taking her eyes off Yennefer's face. When she let go of the note Yennefer grabbed it and tapped loudly on the till. She took out a handful of change without checking that it was the right amount and dropped it in front of Tissaia. A few of the coins fell off the bar and onto the floor, and Yennefer watched a pound coin roll away and land on the dance floor. She took a few steps back and leant against the back of the bar. Tissaia was still watching her like a hawk, her brows knitted together.</p>
<p>"Are you going to sit there staring at me like a creep all night?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"If I have to," said Tissaia. "I want to know what's wrong."</p>
<p>"Finish your drink and get out before I have the bouncer remove you."</p>
<p>"Why are you acting so hostile? What-"</p>
<p>Yennefer slammed her palms against the bar either side of Tissaia who flinched and leant back in her stool.</p>
<p>"Stop, just stop," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia straightened. "Stop what?"</p>
<p>"Stop acting like you care."</p>
<p>"I'm not acting."</p>
<p>"Don't lie to me, and don't treat me like a fool," said Yennefer. "I know this is all just a game to you."</p>
<p>Tissaia put her hands on the bar and clasped them. Her expression was entirely neutral. "I'm not, and I never would," she said. "Yennefer, you're talking nonsense. I-"</p>
<p>"Am I?" Yennefer pushed off the bar and started pacing. "So, you didn't avoid me at the museum or barely speak to me or even look at me. That was all just in my head, was it?"</p>
<p>Yennefer saw Tissaia's eyes widen slightly. She had her now.</p>
<p>"That's not- You've got this all wrong," said Tissaia. "Let me explain."</p>
<p>"You don't need to explain, I understand just fine. This is all for show," Yennefer said, holding her arms out as though she were addressing a crowd. "You want people to see you befriending me because it looks good, but I don't want to be your pathetic little charity case."</p>
<p>"Then where is the crowd?"</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped pacing. "What?" she said.</p>
<p>"If this is a show, then where is the crowd?" said Tissaia. "Who am I trying to impress if there is no one in here to watch us?"</p>
<p>Yennefer crossed her arms and pressed her lips together. She looked past Tissaia and saw that she was right. No one in the bar was looking at them. If Tissaia wanted people to see them together then why would she come to The Lioness when it was empty, and why would she ignore her at the museum and not introduce her to people? It didn't add up. Yennefer titled her head back and ran her hands over her forehead and through her hair. Tissaia was making her doubt herself, and she didn't like it.</p>
<p>"Stop it," said Yennefer. "Stop trying to get inside my head."</p>
<p>"I'm not trying to do anything besides speak the truth," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"I used to believe that, but not anymore." Yennefer stepped up to the bar and towered over Tissaia who had to lift her head back to look at her. "I see you for what you are now. A frigid and manipulative bitch with a broom stuck up her arse and a fetish for controlling the shit out of everything and everyone."</p>
<p>Tissaia's hands slid off the bar and she leant back in her seat, moving away from Yennefer, and breaking eyes contact. Yennefer's word had cut her deep, and her mask had fallen to pieces.</p>
<p>"Get out," said Yennefer. "I don't want your fucking charity."</p>
<p>She watched Tissaia get up and sling her bag over her shoulder and hurriedly walk out of the club without adjusting her clothes, and with her hands clutching at the strap across her chest. After the doors had slammed shut behind her, Yennefer picked up the untouched gin and tonic and poured the drink down the sink then dropped the glass in and clutched the edge of the bowl. Hair tumbled down her shoulders and she closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. She hadn't meant to hurt Tissaia like that, she'd just wanted her gone, but she had betrayed Yennefer first. Hadn't she?</p>
<p>Yennefer straightened up and took the empty glass out of the sink. She turned back to the bar and froze. Calanthe was standing at the end of the bar, and she looked furious.</p>
<p>"My office, now," she said, pointing to a staff only door.</p>
<p>Yennefer threw her hands in the air. "You can't be-"</p>
<p>"Now."</p>
<p>Yennefer slammed the glass down on the side and stormed past Calanthe and through the door. She walked down the corridor and barged through the second door on the right. Calanthe's office was small and cluttered and looked like it had been put together from her dead mother's old living room furniture. There was a desk with creaky metal legs at the back of the room and two armchairs with frayed arms and cushions in front of it. A TV was bolted to the wall left of the door and opposite the desk, and piles of boxes and a notice boards hid most of the crumbling paint. Yennefer dropped down into one of the armchairs and leant back, picking at the threads while Calanthe squeezed past her and sat behind her desk, which was never a good sign.</p>
<p>Calanthe closed her laptop and looked at Yennefer. "What the hell were you thinking?" she said.</p>
<p>"Oh, you're one to talk," said Yennefer. "You fight with customers more often than any of us."</p>
<p>"First of all," Calanthe said, pointing at her, "watch your damn mouth and don't talk to me like that again. And second of all, I'm not angry at you for arguing with someone."</p>
<p>Yennefer sat up. "Then what am I doing in here?"</p>
<p>"Because you're a bloody idiot, that's why."</p>
<p>Yennefer opened her mouth to snap back but the warning look that Calanthe shot at her made her think better of it. She wasn't afraid of confrontation or picking fights, but Calanthe didn't do arguments. If you started something with her, you didn't get a fight, you got bloody murdered.</p>
<p>"You should have let her explain," said Calanthe. "She was right. You've got this all wrong."</p>
<p>"Do you make a habit of eavesdropping on my conversations?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"When they happen in my bar and with her, then yes, and I don't care if you don't like it. Deal with it. And I wasn't eavesdropping, I was keeping an eye on you."</p>
<p>"What are you, my mother?"</p>
<p>Unlike before, with Tissaia, Yennefer regretted her words as soon as that had left her mouth. Calanthe froze in her chair and her ticked off expression faded into something that Yennefer didn't recognize, but which made her wish that Calanthe was still shouting at her. Yennefer let go of the armchair and bent forwards, dropping her eyes to the floor and holding her head in her hands. She felt drained and her hands were shaking. When the silence got too much, Yennefer looked up and saw Calanthe staring at her desk with her eyes glazed over.</p>
<p>Yennefer swallowed. "Calanthe I'm-"</p>
<p>"Don't say another word," Calanthe said in somebody else's voice. Quiet and lacklustre.</p>
<p>Yennefer obeyed and watched Calanthe bend down and heard her open the mini-fridge under her desk. She put a bottle of whisky on the table, pulled a glass out of her desk drawer, just one, and poured herself a drink and finished it in one go. She refilled her glass and picked it up, then sat back in her chair with one arm over the backrest and swirled her drink.</p>
<p>"Gods, you make my life difficult, girl," Calanthe said, looking sideways at Yennefer. "Sometimes I ask myself why I put up with all your crap, but I know why, even if I don't like it."</p>
<p>Calanthe took a sip of her drink and got up. She walked around the desk and nudged the other armchair with her knee until it was facing Yennefer and sat down. She held the whisky between her fingers and bent forwards in her chair, resting her arms on her legs and looking at Yennefer with a straight face that didn't suit her.</p>
<p>"You're right," she said. "I'm not your mother, but we both know that I'm the closet thing you've got. I'm trying to look out for you, Yennefer, is that so hard to believe?"</p>
<p>Yennefer shook her head.</p>
<p>"Say something," said Calanthe.</p>
<p>"No, it's not," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Good." Calanthe took a sip of her whisky and tapped her nails against the glass<em>.</em> "Can we go back to being angry at each other because this is fucking worse. I think I'm going to be sick."</p>
<p>Calanthe smiled and they laughed. Yennefer wondered whether she should try to apologize, but decided not to. Bringing it up again would only upset them both.</p>
<p>"Right," said Calanthe. "Let's go back to talking about your girl."</p>
<p>Yennefer raised an eyebrow at her. "My girl?" she said.</p>
<p>Calanthe's grin widened. "Yes, your girl. You've made a right fucking mess of things there."</p>
<p>"Why? She didn't exactly try to deny that she'd avoided me or-"</p>
<p>"That's because she did, but with good reason."</p>
<p>Yennefer furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"</p>
<p>"Did Tissaia tell you why she was going to that event?" said Calanthe.</p>
<p>"She said she had to."</p>
<p>"Why?"</p>
<p>Yennefer thought back to their conversation outside Tissaia's block of flats. "Because her family have made donations to the museum."</p>
<p>"Yes, but why did that mean she had to go?"</p>
<p>"Stop asking me questions and just tell me," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Fine," said Calanthe. "She would have gone because her family told her to and because she had to represent the Lawrence's and their interests at the event. Did you see her smiling a lot?"</p>
<p>"Again, with the questions."</p>
<p>"Humour me."</p>
<p>"Yes, but it wasn't real."</p>
<p>Calanthe smirked at her. "You noticed that, did you?" she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer shrugged and hoped that her cheeks weren't flush. Calanthe didn't need to know how long she had spent staring at Tissaia that evening. "So?" she said.</p>
<p>"So how have you not managed to put two and two together. Fucking hell this is painful. Did you not wonder why she was pretending to smile and look happy all the time?"</p>
<p>No, she hadn't, but it didn't take her long to guess why. "Because she was trying to give a good impression," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Calanthe swept out her arms. "And the penny finally drops," she said and toasted Yennefer.</p>
<p>"But what has this got to do with her ignoring me?"</p>
<p>"Oh, come on, you are killing me here," said Calanthe. "Look, the bottom line is that the Lawrences are an important family that most people either want to be on good terms with or knock back a few pegs. Their investments and businesses have done a lot of people a lot of good, but their success has made them enemies too. At that event, Tissaia was playing a game, the same game that I played when I was her age and the same game that anyone of importance, wealth or influence at that event was trying to play.</p>
<p>"She was trying to represent her family by giving a good impression, by impressing all the right people, and by making sure that no one got the upper hand on her. People would have been trying to outmanoeuvre her or earn her favour all night, and if they'd noticed that you two were friendly with each other then you would have been dragged into the game as well. They would have picked your brains about how you knew her, where you met, what you do, why you are friends, and blah, blah, blah."</p>
<p>"Why?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"Because if someone wanted to learn about Tissaia, why wouldn't you start by looking at her friends? Do you get it now? Tissaia wasn't ignoring you because she didn't want you there. She was trying to keep those vultures off you."</p>
<p>Had people been looking at her when she had talked to Tissaia, Yennefer wondered. She couldn't remember. She'd only had eyes for Tissaia, but now she was sure about something she'd seen that night. Tissaia had smiled at her, and it had been the only time that night that she had meant it.</p>
<p>Yennefer dropped her head into her hands. "I'm a fucking idiot," she said.</p>
<p>"I know," said Calanthe.</p>
<p>"How am I going to fix this?"</p>
<p>"Do you know where she lives?"</p>
<p>"Yes."</p>
<p>"Then chase after her." Yennefer looked up and stared at her<em>.</em> "Go," said Calanthe, "she's already had a head start. You need to be quick if you want to catch her."</p>
<p>Yennefer got to her feet and pulled the door open then looked back.</p>
<p>"Don't worry about it," Calanthe said, waving her hand. "Now, go and get your girl."</p>
<p>Yennefer set off at a brisk walk which escalated into a slow jog and then a run before sh'd reached the end of the street. After five minutes, Tissaia's building came into view and Yennefer thought she saw her by the door searching her bag.</p>
<p>"Tissaia," Yennefer shouted, coming to a stop.</p>
<p>The other woman looked up. It was her.</p>
<p>"Tissaia. wait," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She started walking towards her but broke back into a run when Tissaia turned away and kept rummaging in her bag. Before Yennefer could reach her, Tissaia held her hand up to the security panel and the door buzzed and unlocked and she slipped inside. Even though she knew that the door would have locked itself before she could get there, Yennefer kept going and pulled on the handle anyway. She peered through the windows and saw Tissaia disappear behind the heavy metal doors of an elevator.</p>
<p>Panting, Yennefer rested her back against the building and slid to the floor. What was she going to do now?</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>What has Yennefer done! :O Quite an angsty chapter this, isn't it? Poor Tissaia, I'm sorry :(</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Parties and Stakeouts</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Aretuza university's law building was an impressive example of excessive architecture and self-importance. A pair of bare-chested and heavy-set statues of criminally misleading muscular proportions with books in their hands top and tailed a set of scuffed stone stairs that led up to the roofed porch outside the entrance. Their features were worn with age, bird-droppings and boringly simple graffiti that had to make you wonder whether the artist was a seven-year-old child or an adult without any self-respect. Four-cylinder pillars marked with cigarette burns stood atop the stairs and held up a triangular piece of stone that had the faded words 'Aretuza University Law Building' chiselled onto its good side. The white stone of the building was grim and blackened and in desperate need of a power wash that doubtless social media fanatics would have paid to do for the chance of uploading a trending 'oddly satisfying' post.</p>
<p>The entrance to the building was guarded by a pointless and ever turning revolving door that had people queuing along the porch and down the steps. Yennefer watched the crowd from her perch under the shit-stained arm of the least disgusting statue. She kicked her heels against the stone base that the scholar was lounging on in a position that made her hope it hadn't been sculpted using a life model. She had gotten up early that morning to try and catch Tissaia between lectures, but at ten to twelve her two-hour stakeout had yet to turn up any useful information regarding her target's possible location.</p>
<p>Yennefer tucked her pencil into the crack in the centre of her sketchbook and put the closed book under a fold in the statue's toga. She jumped down and stretched in the gap between the statue and the raised porch. She raised her arms above her head and heard as much as felt a satisfying crack in her back. Her position under the scholar was not a comfortable one, but it did have a good view of the door and it was sheltered meaning that she didn't have to worry about campus security sending her away for stalking one of their most prized students. Yennefer shook some feeling back into her legs and climbed back up into her hideout.</p>
<p>At the end of the street, Yennefer saw the hour hand on the old green-rusted clock above the town hall lurch around to the roman numeral for twelve, XII. The bell rang for the death of another Monday morning and the crowd outside the law building pulled out their phones and started to look annoyed and impatient. Rush hour on the university campus had reached its climax and the rotating door wasn't fast enough for modern foot traffic. People were darting into the doors the moment that they were free and Yennefer could see people braced against the forward section of their segregated pods and pushing with the entire weight of their body to get inside the building before their next lecture.</p>
<p>From her elevated position, Yennefer could see the heads and faces of the bored, laptop and textbook wielding students and their tired, briefcase-carrying professors. Yennefer watched them attentively, spying for a straight-faced and brown-haired woman until the crowd thinned and the pencil was back in her hand. While she was mentally prepared to conduct her stakeout for another two hours, her back was not as resilient, nor her stomach. She had a breakfast bar worth of time left until her body revolted. Yennefer brushed the strawberry-yoghurt coated crumbs off her sketchbook and tapped her pencil against the page.</p>
<p>She wanted another pattern to draw and thought that she may as well make use of her position and gather inspiration from one of the brightest and most flamboyantly styled populations in Gors Velen and started to observe the students in their second natural habitat, the first being any licensed-premise within a five-mile radius of campus. While observing and taking field-notes on a slim white male in a black, white, and gold flowered shirt that screamed 'trying to make my Dad's holiday clothes look fashionable', Yennefer noticed a plainly dressed figure emerge from behind a group of ordinary-sized men and women and recognised that satchel across the student's chest. Tissaia turned to her left and passed in front of Yennefer's hiding spot. Yennefer threw her sketchbook into her bag and followed her. She waited until Tissaia stopped to cross the road and then stepped in front of her.</p>
<p>"I want to talk," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia stopped mid-stride and pulled her laptop and pile of textbooks towards her chest. Yennefer caught a faint look of surprise in her eyes before Tissaia deployed her poker-face and regarded her with no familiarity. She stepped to the side and walked up the street and tried to cross the road again. Yennefer moved to block her. She wasn't getting away that easily. She'd had to get up before noon to catch her.</p>
<p>"Get out of my way," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"No, not until you listen to me," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia's expression hardened. "I don't want to hear anything you have to say."</p>
<p>"But I-"</p>
<p>"Is this lady bothering you, Tissaia?" said a voice Yennefer didn't recognize.</p>
<p>She looked over Tissaia's shoulder and saw a young man step away from the steady trickle of students walking up and down the street and stand next to Tissaia. He had long black hair that was slicked back and a stubbled chin, and he was covered from head to toe in brand logos that did nothing for his aesthetics besides boast how much it had cost. Since he was carrying the same textbooks at Tissaia, Yennefer assumed he was a law student and his name, she learned later, was Vilgefortz.</p>
<p>Tissaia plastered on a smile and turned to her wannabe knight in shining Calvin Klein armour. "No, everything is fine, thank you," she said, and then looked pointedly at Yennefer. "She was just leaving."</p>
<p>"No, she wasn't," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia narrowed her eyes. "You are-"</p>
<p>"She told you to leave," said Vilgefortz.</p>
<p>He stepped in front of Yennefer and hide Tissaia behind him. Yennefer glowered at him. What a fucking prick, she thought. Who did he think he was to interfere and speak on Tissaia's behalf? And he had interrupted Tissaia when she'd tried to speak to her. Was he looking for a black eye to go with his shirt?</p>
<p>"And she told you everything was fine," said Yennefer. "So, fuck off."</p>
<p>Vilgefortz crossed his arms and puffed out his chest. Yennefer snorted. He reminded her of the pigeons living on her windowsill. They liked to ruffle their feathers and pretend they were intimidating too.</p>
<p>"I'm not going anywhere until you leave her alone," he said.</p>
<p>"Back off, arsehole" Yennefer shouted. "This has nothing to do with you."</p>
<p>Her face was close enough to his that she could see his nostrils flare and unfortunately smell the evidence of his excessive and possibly insecure use of aftershave and male cologne. She kept her eyes trained on his face and they stood chest to breasts like the wrestlers and boxers her father liked to watch on TV with his best and only friend; a bottle of beer. She heard people muttering on her behind her and guessed that a few people had stopped to watch the show and see whether a fight would break out. If she didn't have the impression that Tissaia, the woman who's good books she was supposed to be trying to get back into, would not approve of such a barbaric display of human nature then she would have happily made the first move. She thought that she would enjoy teaching this rich prick a lesson about interrupting people and sticking his nose where it didn't belong, and the way he'd looked at Tissaia and raked his eyes over her body when he'd invited himself to her side was all the more reason to bloody up his stupid face.</p>
<p>"That's enough," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She stepped between them and forced Yennefer back by putting a hand on her waist and pushing her. Under normal circumstances, Yennefer would have shoved the good Samaritan out of the way to get back at her opponent, but Tissaia didn't evoke that reaction from her. Instead, Yennefer let herself be guided back by her touch and took her eyes off her foe to look at the woman standing between them.</p>
<p>"Tiss-"</p>
<p>"Not another word," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She gestured for Yennefer to follow and they crossed the road, leaving Vilgefortz and his admirers behind. Tissaia led her through a small park, into one of the university buildings and down several flights of stairs. They went through a maze of corridors with cream coloured walls and flaky white radiators and Yennefer could hear people talking through the thins walls as they passed door after door. She lost track of all the turns they had taken when Tissaia opened a door on her right at the end of another indistinct passageway and went inside.</p>
<p>The room was small and cramped, with a dozen desks and chairs packed into the tiny space without any regard for personal space or comfort. It smelt of damp and wet clothes and the interactive whiteboard was stained by ink, undoubtedly by some clueless old lecturer who liked to complain about how back in his day they'd coped with good old-fashioned blackboards and white chalk. Tissaia closed the door behind Yennefer and walked to the opposite side of the room. She spread her laptop and textbooks over several tables, Yennefer wouldn't have trusted their structural integrity either, and looked up. Yennefer stayed by the door. She knew that she needed to give Tissaia space, but that didn't mean she had to like it.</p>
<p>"Two minutes," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"What?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"You have two minutes to explain yourself before I walk out of here and file for a restraining order."</p>
<p>Yennefer swallowed. She put her hands in her pockets then took them out. When they had been devising a plan to win Tissaia's forgiveness Calanthe had mentioned something about showing your palms when you apologized, alongside some other important things that had brain had failed to store in her Tissaia's Apology memory file. She knew she should have taken notes. Reading out an obviously scripted presentation would have been less embarrassing than standing in front of her audience tongue-tied.</p>
<p>"You were right about what you said at The Lioness," said Yennefer. "I was talking out of my arse. When you hardly spoke to me at the museum, I thought it was because you didn't want to be seen with me. It upset me to see you talking and smiling with other people while I was being ignored. I thought that I'd gotten it all wrong, that we weren't really friends. I convinced myself that I was just some poor girl you'd taken pity on, that…" Yennefer sighed<em>.</em> "I don't know. At the time, it made sense."</p>
<p>Tissaia stared at her. She didn't look angry or upset; she didn't look like she was feeling much of anything, and that was worse. Tissaia had closed up. She didn't feel comfortable around her anymore.</p>
<p>"Calanthe gave me a proper telling off after you left," said Yennefer. "Told me I was a bloody idiot, and she was right. I didn't understand why you were spending so much time with other people and not me, and I got jealous and made assumptions that I shouldn't have. But now I know, and I'm sorry, Tissaia. I should have let you explain, and I shouldn't have said the things that I did."</p>
<p>"I believe you," said Tissaia, "and I forgive you for your misunderstanding. But I cannot forget or forgive what you said to me."</p>
<p>She turned away and gathered up her things.</p>
<p>"I didn't mean it, any of it," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia adjusted the pile in her arms and stepped up to the door. She reached for the handle and Yennefer grabbed her shoulder. Tissaia shrugged off her hand.</p>
<p>"Yes, you did," she said. "Goodbye, Yennefer."</p>
<p>She stepped out the door and her footsteps echoed down the corridor. When she turned out of sight, Yennefer knew that she'd be gone for good. If she wanted her to stay, she had to tell her everything.</p>
<p>"You were too good to be true, and that's why I pushed you away," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Half-way around the corner, Tissaia paused.</p>
<p>"How could I think that someone like you would want anything to do with me," said Yennefer. "You're smart, funny, and kind, and I feel like I can trust you, and that's not something I do easily. You know about all the shit that I've been through, but it didn't scare you off or make you treat me differently. And you're pretty hot too."</p>
<p>Tissaia turned around. Her composed façade had faltered, and her expression was friendly and familiar, and real.</p>
<p>Yennefer walked towards her. "That's what I think," she said. "Do you believe me?"</p>
<p>"I do," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer felt queasy with nerves. "Will you forgive me?" she asked.</p>
<p>"I might, if you promise me something."</p>
<p>"What?</p>
<p>"That if something like this happens again, you'll talk to me. We could have avoided this if you'd just told me what was wrong."</p>
<p>"I promise."</p>
<p>Tissaia smiled. "Then I forgive you."</p>
<p>There were probably a hundred things that Yennefer could have done at that moment. She could have laughed with relief, said that it wouldn't happen again, or say thank you. But what she chose to do, or rather what she found herself doing without any recollection of how it happened, was pulling a startled Tissaia into her arms. It was the first time that they had hugged, and the most contact they had shared excluding that moment in The Vaults when Yennefer had been warding off predators. And it was nice. Nicer than it had any right to be since Tissaia's laptop and textbooks were stuck between them and she could only hold Yennefer with one arm.</p>
<p>When Yennefer stepped back, they were both smiling and she decided to test her luck and ask Tissaia if she wanted to get some lunch, and she agreed. Yennefer took the pile from Tissaia's arms and they had a quick bite to eat together in one of the university's cafes before Yennefer walked Tissaia to her next lecture. On her way home, Yennefer made a mental note to buy Calanthe some chocolates. She'd earned them, and enough whisky to last a week, but Calanthe already had that covered.</p>
<hr/>
<p>"Did you have to invite him as well?" Philippa asked.</p>
<p>It was Friday night and Yennefer and Istredd had just arrived at Philippa and Sabrina's flat where they were hosting a joint party with the flat next-door. At ten in the evening, the open-plan kitchen and living room of both apartments were already crowded with binge-drinking students and there was a small queue outside both bathrooms. To get into Philippa and Sabrina's flat, Yennefer had had to fight her way through a pack of men and women that were engaged in some sort of courtship ritual that involved lowering each other's self-esteem and hoping their standards would come down as well. In the kitchen she'd elbowed a blond-haired man with a southern accent, she thought it was Nilfgaardian, out of the way to clear enough space to pour herself a glass of vodka and lemonade without incurring a spillage risk.</p>
<p>Yennefer screwed the cap back onto her bottle and hid it in one of the cupboards. "I had to," she said. "I did stand him up for this."</p>
<p>Istredd had not been pleased with her when he'd discovered that she couldn't go out with him that evening because she already had plans. His displeasure increased tenfold when she told him that those plans involved Philippa and alcohol and a party, and he had insisted that he come with her. She didn't want him there but knowing that he would have turned up at the flat anyway she'd gone along with it. When they had arrived, and as per Philippa's instructions, she'd passed him off to some history students in the other apartment. For the next hour or two, she was a free woman and she had to get as much drinking and fun accomplished as possible before her miserable and critical shadow returned to haunt her.</p>
<p>"I wish you hadn't," said Philippa. "I don't want him here. He's like that creature from Harry Potter. The one that makes people feel miserable just by existing."</p>
<p>"A Dementor."</p>
<p>"That's the one. And if your other guest shows up then they'll suck all the life out of my party."</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped chugging her drink and put the cup down on the kitchen counter. "Tissaia is nothing like a dementor."</p>
<p>Philippa shrugged. "Maybe not, but she's still a buzzkill," she said.</p>
<p>"No, she's not."</p>
<p>"She is. I think she might be allergic to fun, or maybe she just thinks that it's a waste of time."</p>
<p>"You're wrong. We've had fun together," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Philippa looked doubtful. "Are you sure?"</p>
<p>"Yes, I'm sure. We had a good time at The Vaults playing in the arcade. She is fun, you just don't appreciate her sense of humour."</p>
<p>"Possibly," Philippa said slowly, "or we might happen to know two different Tissaias."</p>
<p>Before Yennefer had a chance to ask what she meant Philippa walked away and sat down at the table in one of the camping chairs that someone had probably stolen from a music festival. Yennefer finished her drink in one and poured herself a new one then joined Philippa who had been putting cards face down on the table in a circle with an empty cup in the middle. It was for a drinking game called Kings that involved players taking turns picking up a card and then completing the designated action, which typically involved the picker or another player drinking. Picking a three, for example, meant that the player had to drink, and drawing a five meant that anyone who identified as a 'guy' had to take a drink.</p>
<p>On her second go, Yennefer drew an ace, which meant that everyone at the table had to take turns drinking for a length of time that she set. She chose five seconds, because the group was too large to do her preferred fifteen seconds, and leant back in her chair to watch the domino-effect drinking pattern. Half-way around the table, Philippa caught her attention.</p>
<p>"Is that Tissaia standing by the door?" she asked.</p>
<p>Yennefer crossed her arms over her chest. Philippa had picked up a queen on her last turn which made her the question master. If she asked you a question and you answered then you drank, if she asked you a question and you responded with a question then she drank.</p>
<p>"Did you think you could catch me out like that?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Philippa picked up her drink and Yennefer smirked.</p>
<p>"Hello, Yennefer."</p>
<p>The plastic cup in Yennefer's hands made a horrible cracking sound when she squeezed it a tad too hard. She let go before she risked splitting the cup and spilling her drink and turned around in her chair. Tissaia was standing behind her, one hand gripping the back of her chair and the other holding a plastic Marks and Spencer carrier bag. She was wearing a green jacket over a black top and light blue jeans, and for once, instead of heels, Yennefer noticed that she was wearing boots, but her hair was still up. One thing at a time, Yennefer told herself, she'd get the pins out eventually.</p>
<p>"Surprised to see me?" Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>"I didn't think you'd come," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>When she had told Philippa that she was going to invite Tissaia, she had told her not to bother. She said that Tissaia had been invited to parties like this before but had never shown up and that she was regarded as only enjoying her own company. Yennefer didn't believe that. Knowing that Tissaia didn't enjoy loud noises, cramped spaces or crowds, she could understand why she had not accepted any previous invitations. Even so, Yennefer had decided to ask, hoping that Tissaia might be willing to brave the discomfort if she knew that she would be there. Not for a minute had she believed that she would. She wasn't in the habit of being optimistic.</p>
<p>"Neither did I," said Tissaia, "but I decided that it might be worthwhile to try something new. Besides, I soon shan't have the chance to experience this."</p>
<p>"What do you mean?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"That engaging in this sort of drinking culture would hardly be appropriate after I graduate and start work."</p>
<p>Yennefer nodded but didn't say anything. It didn't seem fair to her that Tissaia wasn't allowed to act her age or do as she pleased. The reputation of her family and her responsibility to uphold their name had matured Tissaia beyond her years, and the thought that Tissaia's family cared more about their reputation than their daughter's happiness pissed Yennefer off.</p>
<p>"Then we should make the most of tonight," said Philippa. She looked at the young man sitting in the chair next to Yennefer and he got up. "Join us, we're playing Kings. I'm sure Yennefer would be happy to teach you the rules."</p>
<p>Yennefer eyed Philippa suspiciously. "She needs to get a drink first," she said.</p>
<p>"James will get one for her," said Philippa, gesturing to the guest that had just given up his seat.</p>
<p>"No, I will. I need to refill my glass anyway."</p>
<p>Yennefer got up from the table and cleared a path into the kitchen for Tissaia. There was a selection of spirits, cider, beer, and mixers on the kitchen counter and Yennefer took a red plastic cup from the top of the stack.</p>
<p>"What would you like?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"Actually, I brought something," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She opened her bag and pulled out a small box of mini eclairs and a bottle of prosecco. Yennefer opened it and poured Tissaia a glass then hid the drink in the cupboard with her vodka. She supposed that Tissaia had brought them as gifts because that was the proper thing to do when going to a party at someone else's place, but the bottle looked expensive and it would be a shame to waste a good drink on students that were too drunk to appreciate it. She did, however, leave out the eclairs because she knew that she would want one later when she got the munchies.</p>
<p>After Yennefer topped up her drink with less vodka and more mixer than usual, aware that Tissaia could observe her drinking habits from where she was standing, she bypassed Philippa and took Tissaia next door. She spotted Istredd standing just inside the door, and though she would have preferred to avoid him she would rather face his company than let Tissaia play Kings with Philippa. He looked at her when she went past and Yennefer thought he was going to make her stop, but then he saw Tissaia and turned back to the group of students he'd been talking with. They went inside and sat down on the couch, which was surprisingly unoccupied, and Yennefer made sure that Tissaia was sitting by the armrest that way, if people tried to join them later, which they inevitably would once the drink kicked in, Tissaia would be squished up next to her and the armrest rather than a stranger.</p>
<p>They talked about Yennefer's job at The Lioness and about Calanthe. Tissaia had known her since she was a child because the Lawrences and the Riannons used to be close, and she had known her daughter, Pavetta, well. Her funeral had been the last time that Tissaia had seen Calanthe because after that she retired from the high life and set up The Lioness with Eist. She was still invited to the events that they hosted, but it was mostly a courtesy. No one expected her to turn up and many were glad when she didn't, though Tissaia had always respected her strong character.</p>
<p>At some point during the conversation, Tissaia pointed out a book hidden under the coffee table and picked it up. Even before she had read the title or the blurb, Yennefer could tell that is was some crappy romance novel because of all the pastel colours and the stupid, love-struck look on the two cover character's faces. Yennefer took the book and read out the blurb and watched Tissaia's eyes roll into the back of her head when she was struck by how cringey it was. They entertained themselves by reading out passages and mocking how sickening it was to read, and when Yennefer checked her phone to look at a text she noticed that they had been talking for almost an hour and she'd barely drunk at all.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry this is a day late. (As mentioned on Tumblr) I was busy on Saturday and didn't want to rush through proofreading. For similar reasons, I won't be updating on Wednesday. But don't worry. This story is far from over. At the time of this update, I'm 49,000 words in and up to chapter 17 but I'm delaying posting for a while because the chapters I've written are first drafts and I usually post the fourth draft. Hope that wait isn't too bad (at least this chapter isn't a cliffhanger!)</p>
<p>I think I might have gone overboard with the stakeout description but I had fun with it :D Wonder what Tissaia and Yennefer will get up to at the party next week? Here's a hint... Chapter 10 is called 'Never Have I Ever...'</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until in a week (Saturday) Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Never Have I Ever...</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warning: this chapter contains domestic abuse (physical violence: bruising hold, sexual violence: unwanted kiss, and emotional abuse: threats and controlling behaviour). If you become distressed while reading the chapter, please refer to your national domestic abuse helpline.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The message on Yennefer's phone was from Philippa and it contained a picture of her and Tissaia sitting on the sofa and laughing over the book they had found. It was followed by a text that said: 'I was beginning to wonder why you hadn't filled your drink up in a while. Got distracted staring into your girlfriend's eyes, did you?' Yennefer frowned at the message and looked up. She spotted Philippa standing opposite the couch talking to the two young women that owned the flat, Lauren and Hollie. She came over and perched on the edge of the coffee table in front of them.</p>
<p>"So, this is where you two lo- little birds flew off to," said Philippa.</p>
<p>"There weren't any seats left in your flat," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"But we'd saved you a space at the table. Why didn't you join us?"</p>
<p>Yennefer leaned forward to put the book on the coffee table and got up in Philippa's face. She gave her a dirty look when she didn't think that Tissaia could see her face and then sat back.</p>
<p>"It doesn't matter," said Philippa with a wave of her hand. "We're going to play something now."</p>
<p>Philippa asked the group that she had been talking with to come over to the sofa, and she must have texted Sabrina too because she came in a few moments later dragging two camping chairs behind her. Yennefer moved to her right and pressed Tissaia up against the armrest as the others joined them on the sofa. Sabrina sat next to her and James, the student who had given up his seat earlier, and another young man called Élie sat next to Sabrina. The sofa had been intended as a four-seater so their seating arrangements were less than ideal. Yennefer was packed in between Sabrina and Tissaia and she wondered whether they would both be more comfortable if she put her arm over Tissaia, but she didn't want to give Philippa the wrong idea. Lauren and Hollie sat in the camping seats and Philippa stayed where she was on the coffee table.</p>
<p>"We're going to play Never Have I Ever," said Philippa. "Tissaia, Do you know how to play?"</p>
<p>"I'm afraid that the rules have slipped my mind," said Tissaia. "Remind me."</p>
<p>Yennefer didn't give her the chance. "We take it in turns to say something that we've never done," she said, "and if someone in the group has done it then they take a drink."</p>
<p>"I'll go first," said Philippa. "Never have I ever had sex with a man."</p>
<p>Yennefer, Hollie, Lauren, and Sabrina all took a drink, but neither of the two boys or Tissaia did, which Yennefer found very interesting. That meant that Tissaia was either a virgin or a lesbian, or she wasn't playing the game properly, which seemed more likely.</p>
<p>They went around the group and Yennefer had to drink for 'been in a fistfight', 'had a one night stand' and 'sexted someone', but not for 'slept with someone whose name I didn't know' and 'been unfaithful'. Philippa, to no one's great surprise, drank for all of them, and Tissaia didn't drink once.</p>
<p>"Never have I ever…" said Yennefer. She pretended to think of something. "Slept with a woman."</p>
<p>Philippa, Sabrina and the two guys drank. Tissaia didn't. Very interesting, Yennefer thought.</p>
<p>"So, you're a virgin, Tiss," said Philippa.</p>
<p>"It's Tissaia, and yes, I am," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Would you like to fix that tonight?"</p>
<p>"There isn't anything to fix."</p>
<p>"I beg to differ," said Philippa. "I think getting laid would do you some good."</p>
<p>"I'll take your word for it," said Tissaia. "Never have I ever," she continued when Philippa opened her mouth, "stolen something."</p>
<p>Reluctantly, Yennefer drank with Philippa. "I used to steal food from school before we met," she said.</p>
<p>She felt the need to explain herself to Tissaia and knew that she would understand what she meant. Her thieving ways were how she kept her belly full when her parents didn't feed her. Tissaia gave her a sad smile that the others couldn't see and gently squeezed her hand.</p>
<p>"Boring," said Philippa. "I shoplifted these last week." She fingered her earrings. "My turn. Never have I ever questioned my heterosexuality."</p>
<p>"You're gay," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Yes, but I've always known that. I was never straight. Now, drink up."</p>
<p>Yennefer hesitated and then drank, and wondered how Tissaia had responded.</p>
<p>They went around the group again and Yennefer had to get up to refill her drink. She tried to take Tissaia with her and back next-door, but Philippa wouldn't let her go without a fight and Yennefer was forced to abandon her plan to run away with her. She topped up her drink quickly, spilling a little on the side out of haste or perhaps sheer drunkenness, she couldn't tell, and hurried back to the couch. Philippa and Tissaia looked like they were having an intense, high-stakes staring contest when she returned, and Philippa had taken her seat. Yennefer kicked Philippa hard in the ankle and she jerked her leg back and cursed.</p>
<p>"Move," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Philippa let go of her foot and got up. "You could have started with that," she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer dropped back into her seat and threw her right arm over the back of the couch above Tissaia's head. Philippa stopped looking at her with her famous 'I will kill you in your sleep' eyes and the judgmental arch of her eyebrow told Yennefer that she had gotten the reaction she wanted, but Yennefer couldn't bring herself to care.</p>
<p>They went around the group for the third time and at some point, Yennefer realized that she was probably very drunk, but then she pushed the thought aside. She hadn't had that much to drink, had she? But she wasn't doing very well at this game, so maybe she had. It didn't matter. At least she didn't look as bad as Sabrina. Or, she didn't think she did.</p>
<p>"That's enough," Philippa said when Tissaia had taken her turn. "Let's play something else. I want to get Tissaia drunk and this isn't working. She's too dull."</p>
<p>"Don't waste your time," said Tissaia. "Nothing is going to work."</p>
<p>"I thought you said you wanted to try the real student experience. That means you need to drink up. Come on, down your drink. You've barely touched it."</p>
<p>"I'm not downing good prosecco."</p>
<p>Philippa sighed. "Don't be such a bore."</p>
<p>"You can say what you want, I shan't change my mind," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Come-"</p>
<p>"Back off, Phil," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>When would Philippa learn that enough was enough, she thought. She needed to stop trying to get a rise out of Tissaia because the joke was getting old, and she hated it.</p>
<p>"That's cute," said Philippa, cooing. "Yennefer's standing up for her little friend, you two are adorable."</p>
<p>Philippa tried to touch Yennefer's cheek and she slapped her hand away.</p>
<p>"Shut up," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Did I hit a nerve?"</p>
<p>Yennefer clutched her thigh and imagined that she was squeezing Philippa's throat. Nobody broke the silence.</p>
<p>"I'm going to the bathroom," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She got to her feet, pushed her way next-door, and jumped the queue to the bathroom in Philippa and Sabrina's flat. She slammed the door shut and put the tap on full blast and leant against the sink. The torrent hit the bottom edge and she let it slash against her face to cool her down without ruining her makeup. She took a few deep breaths and closed her eyes when the sink started to move. She felt sick.</p>
<p>Yennefer turned off the tap and used the toilet. She was wasted, that had to be it. That was why Philippa was getting under her skin. What other reason was there? She washed her hands and dried them on Philippa bathrobe then left the bathroom and went into the kitchen. She got another plastic cup, filled it with water from the tap and sat on the kitchen counter while she drank. Her legs felt sleepy. She put her empty cup down on the side, closed her eyes and massaged her temples.</p>
<p>"There you are."</p>
<p>Yennefer bit her bottom lip to stifle her moan and didn't open her eyes. Maybe Istredd would think that she was asleep and leave her alone. People could sleep sitting up, couldn't they? Either way, her plan didn't work. She felt Istredd's chest press against her knees and he spread his fingers over her thighs.</p>
<p>"How are you feeling?" Istredd asked.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked at him. "Fine," she said.</p>
<p>"Really? You don't look so good. We should go home."</p>
<p>"Not yet."</p>
<p>"Yenna, we've been here for hours. Let's go home."</p>
<p>Istredd tightened his grip on her thighs, scrunching up the fabric of her skirt, and nudged her legs apart slightly. Yennefer felt her skin crawl and tried to pull away and sit further back on the counter, but Istredd wouldn't let her move. He titled his head back and she couldn't look him in the eye. It took her by surprise, then, when he threaded his fingers through her hair and pulled her face towards him and tried to kiss her.</p>
<p>"Stop," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She braced herself against Istredd's shoulders and his grip on her hair loosened. Yennefer looked up and saw Istredd's eyes narrow. She was in trouble.</p>
<p>"Get down," he said. "We're leaving."</p>
<p>Yennefer stayed where she was and gripped the edge of the counter. She couldn't move.</p>
<p>Istredd stared at her and held her legs in a bruising hold that made Yennefer flinch. After a few seconds Istredd lost his patience and grabbed one of her wrists, pulling down until she was doubled over.</p>
<p>"Don't make me ask you again," he whispered.</p>
<p>He let go and stepped to the side, leaving her room to get down. Yennefer held her wrist. Her hands were clammy with sweat.</p>
<p>"Leave her alone."</p>
<p>Yennefer heard the tell-tale tap of her heels before she saw Tissaia push her way into the kitchen and stand in front of her. She angled herself so that she was standing between her and Istredd, the small of her back pressed against Yennefer's right knee. Istredd looked shocked to see her and after he finished staring at her, Yennefer saw him take a deep breath and hold up his hands.</p>
<p>"I'm trying to get down before she hurts herself," he said in a calm and friendly voice. "She's drunk, I need to take her home."</p>
<p>"She's not going anywhere with you," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Istredd dropped his pretence and stepped up to Tissaia. He towered over her but Tissaia didn't move an inch and while Yennefer couldn't see her face, she imagined that it looked unfazed.</p>
<p>"I'm her boyfriend," said Istredd.</p>
<p>"And?" said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"I'm just trying to look after her."</p>
<p>"Your methods leave a lot to be desired. I think you should leave, Istredd. Unless you want to cause a scene?"</p>
<p>Istredd looked over Tissaia's shoulder and Yennefer followed his gaze. Everyone in the room was looking at them, including Philippa and Sabrina. Istredd's eyes flickered to Yennefer and then to Tissaia and she couldn't tell who received the most hateful glare. He walked towards Tissaia who stood firm in front of Yennefer and shouldered past her. Tissaia shuffled to the side to keep herself between him and Yennefer and watched him until he'd gone out the door and started to head downstairs.</p>
<p>Tissaia turned to face Yennefer and held out her hands. "Come down," she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer nodded and let Tissaia help her down from the kitchen counter. She held onto Tissaia's arm as she led her into Philippa's room, which she had opened for them, and sat her down on the bed. Philippa closed the door behind them and watched from the corner. Tissaia knelt in front of Yennefer and inspected her carefully. Her touch was light and gentle and she held Yennefer's chin and looked at her face, arms, and wrists.</p>
<p>Tissaia put her hands over Yennefer's. "I want you to lift your skirt up for me," she said, "so that I can see your thighs."</p>
<p>Yennefer did, bundling up the edge of her skirt in her fists and sliding it up her legs. Istredd's fingerprints were branded into her skin.</p>
<p>"I'm going to take a picture of this as evidence," said Tissaia. "Okay?"</p>
<p>"Okay," Yennefer mumbled.</p>
<p>Tissaia took out her phone and took a few pictures of the marks then told Yennefer that she could put her skirt down. She got to her feet but stayed by Yennefer's side and exchanged a few words with Philippa that Yennefer didn't hear. None of this felt real and she didn't know what was going on. Yennefer flinched when Tissaia moved in her peripheral vision and knelt in front of her.</p>
<p>"Philippa's getting a few things for you, and then I'm taking you back to my flat," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer tried to speak but her throat was tight and sore. She held a palm against her neck and pinched the skin under her chin hard enough that it hurt. Tissaia pulled her hand away and put in in her lap.</p>
<p>"I'll get you some water," she said.</p>
<p>Tissaia got up and Yennefer grabbed her hand. She didn't want to be alone. Tissaia got the message and sat down next to her. She gave her space, but Yennefer didn't want it and shuffled up the bed until their shoulders were touching. She looked at Tissaia who held out her arm. Yennefer took her invitation and snuggled up to her, resting her head on Tissaia's shoulder and holding her hand when she wrapped an arm about her waist.</p>
<p>A while later Philippa dropped a small bag by their feet and got Yennefer a glass of water that Tissaia insisted she drank. When she was finished, Tissaia helped her down the stairs and into a taxi that was waiting outside. They took the elevator up to her floor and entered her apartment. Tissaia led her up the stairs and took her into a bedroom and laid out some clothes for her that Philippa had packed. She left Yennefer to change and came back with a glass, a jug of water, and some buttered toast. Yennefer took a few bites but felt too nauseated to each much more and after finishing two glasses of water she laid down in bed and watched Tissaia leave and close the door behind her.</p>
<p>It took her a long time to go to sleep and when she did manage to drift off, she dreamt about Istredd and her father and woke up in a cold sweat with Tissaia leaning over her.</p>
<p>"You're okay," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She squeezed Yennefer's shoulders and stroked the hair out of her face while she calmed down. Yennefer closed her eyes and sunk back into the pillows. She took a few steadying breaths and then poured herself another glass of water. Tissaia stayed with her while she drank then got up.</p>
<p>"Try and go back to sleep," she said.</p>
<p>"Wait," said Yennefer. "Will you stay with me?"</p>
<p>Tissaia seemed to consider her for a moment and then nodded. "We'll sleep in my room," she said. "My bed is more comfortable."</p>
<p>Yennefer followed her into the main bedroom and laid down on one side of the bed after turning on the lamp on the bedside cabinet. Tissaia got in next to her and pulled the covers over them. They were facing each other, and Yennefer could feel Tissaia's breath against her face. She edged a little closer until their legs were touching and saw a small smear of cream on Tissaia's cheek that she hadn't rubbed in properly. She also noticed that Tissaia's hair was down and spread out over the pillow and down her shoulders.</p>
<p>It was slightly wavy and curled in places and Yennefer reached out to touch one of her curls and smiled. She found it amusing that Tissaia, a woman who loved control and order, had hair that was somewhat on the wild side. But while it was an odd juxtaposition, Yennefer thought it suited her and that she should wear it down more often. When Yennefer looked up from Tissaia's hair, a lock still curled around one finger, she saw the other woman watching her with a smile.</p>
<p>"Turn around," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer obliged her and Tissaia loosely wrapped her arms around her. She tightened her hold when Yennefer pressed into her so that their bodies were flush, and she felt Tissaia rest her forehead against the back of her neck. This time, Yennefer fell asleep much faster, and she didn't wake up till morning came.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Did you enjoy the little Never Have I Ever interrogation?</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Relationship Advice</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tissaia was gone when she woke up, but Yennefer wasn't eager to get up and find her. She stayed in bed and idly browsed through her social media. There were a few pictures from the party on her feed, including the one that Philippa had taken of her and Tissaia, and she saved it onto her phone. She kept scrolling and froze when Istredd's smiling face appeared on her screen. Yennefer's hands shook and she threw her phone onto the bed, got up, and opened the door.</p>
<p>She walked to the end of the small corridor, passing the spare bedroom and the bathroom, and went up to the balcony that overlooked the living room. Tissaia was sitting on the sofa facing the windows with her laptop in her lap. She was fully dressed and had her hair tied up as normal. Yennefer watched her for a moment, noticing the small crease that formed between her brows when she concentrated, and then went downstairs.</p>
<p>As was to be expected, Tissaia's flat was well decorated and organized and looked like it cost more money than Yennefer could ever hope to make in a lifetime. Most of the walls were painted white, but there was a feature wall behind the staircase and along one side of the upstairs corridor that was made from grey stone of varying shades. The wooden floorboards were genuine and didn't creak when you stepped on them or make you regret walking around in bare feet. A large kitchen and a dining table was tucked underneath the second floor and opened out into a living room with a two-storey ceiling and a wall of glass that offered a magnificent view of the park near the city centre. The furniture was a mix of grey and blue and there were several pieces of art hanging on the walls that, alongside a few plants hiding in various corners, added some colour to the place.</p>
<p>"Good morning," Tissaia said when Yennefer reached the bottom of the stairs. "Sleep well?"</p>
<p>"Yes," said Yennefer. "You were right, your bed is more comfortable."</p>
<p>"Good. Breakfast is on the table, help yourself."</p>
<p>Yennefer sat down at the dining table and had some apple juice, brioche, and strawberries. Usually, she liked to eat while watching the tv or listening to music, but she didn't want to disturb Tissaia. When she finished, Yennefer loaded her dishes into the dishwasher like a good house guest and sat on the other end of the sofa with her body angled towards Tissaia. After tapping on a few more keys, Tissaia closed her laptop and put it on the coffee table.</p>
<p>"When you're ready," she said, "we can go down to the police station."</p>
<p>"What, why?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"To report Istredd."</p>
<p>Yennefer stared at her. Was she being serious? What Istredd did was wrong, yes, but they didn't need to get the police involved. That would only make things worse; make him angrier. They could figure things out themselves.</p>
<p>"I don't want to get the police involved," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"But you should," said Tissaia. She got up from the sofa and sat down next to Yennefer. "I've seen the way he treats you. He's controlling, possessive, and manipulative. He's an abusive partner, Yennefer, whether he's ever hit you or not. What he's doing is wrong. You need to leave him, and the police can help. You deserve better, you-"</p>
<p>"You don't know what you're talking about," said Yennefer. "And who are you to question my relationship? What do you know?"</p>
<p>"I know that this is wrong and that staying with Istredd could get you killed."</p>
<p>"No," Yennefer screamed. She jumped to her feet and backed away from the sofa, crossing her arms over her chest. "Istredd isn't like that. He'd never hurt me."</p>
<p>"The marks on your legs prove otherwise," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"That was an accident. He didn't… He wouldn't…"</p>
<p>Yennefer turned away from Tissaia and walked out onto the balcony behind the ceiling to floor windows. It was cold outside, but the chilling wind suited her mood perfectly. She rested her forearms on the railing and leant out over the balcony, her back arched and her head drooping. Yennefer knew that Tissaia meant well, but she didn't know Istredd like she did, and their relationship was not what it looked like. Istredd only acted the way he did because she kept testing him and because he was trying to look out for her. He was trying to stop her from making a mess, because that was what she did. She was reckless and thoughtless and needed his guidance. Life had been better since they had gotten together. Hadn't it?</p>
<p>There wasn't as much laughter anymore, and she didn't get to see her friends as often as she would like, or to go out when she wanted and to do what she wanted, but that was all for the best. She had stability with Istredd, and he was helping her build a better life by getting an apprenticeship. He didn't support her dreams because they were unrealistic and stupid, and he was trying to set her on a responsible and achievable path to success. But Tissaia had believed in her and her sketchbook, and she had helped her with her designs. She had been supportive. Istredd hadn't. But that didn't mean he didn't care. Weren't friends always more supportive than partners? They didn't have to give you tough love, not like a partner or family member did.</p>
<p>Yennefer heard the door open and close behind her and smelt Tissaia's perfume beside her. She stayed where she was, looking down at the park.</p>
<p>"You don't need to be afraid," said Tissaia. "You can get through this. Let me help you."</p>
<p>"I don't want your help, and I'm not afraid," Yennefer said. She straightened up and took a step back from the edge of the balcony. "I could leave if I wanted to."</p>
<p>"Then leave."</p>
<p>"No, I don't want to."</p>
<p>"But-"</p>
<p>"Have you ever been in a relationship?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"No," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Then stop acting like you know what's best for me."</p>
<p>"I'm trying to help you, Yennefer. I don't want to see you get hurt."</p>
<p>Tissaia reached out and took Yennefer's hand but she pulled away and stepped back.</p>
<p>"If I wanted your help, then I'd ask for it," said Yennefer. "Stop interfering."</p>
<p>"I won't," said Tissaia, "not when your life is on the line."</p>
<p>Yennefer laughed. "So that's what this is about?" she said. "You want to play the hero again."</p>
<p>"What I want is for you to understand that your relationship with Istredd is unhealthy and that it has to end," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"You're wrong. You're only seeing what you want to see, and I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't need saving this time."</p>
<p>"Do you honestly believe that Istredd's behaviour is acceptable?"</p>
<p>"Not always, but he can change. I-"</p>
<p>"Your father never did, so why would he?"</p>
<p>"Don't bring him into this," Yennefer shouted. She walked towards Tissaia and backed her into a corner. "It's nothing like that."</p>
<p>"I beg to differ," said Tissaia. Her expression was neutral, save for the anger Yennefer saw behind her eyes. "I think that Istredd is the type of man that your father would be proud of."</p>
<p>Yennefer started back, then caught herself. She balled her hands into fists and shoved them into her pockets before she could do something stupid, or dangerous. A balcony was not an ideal location to be angry, especially when you were within arms reach of the party responsible for ticking you off.</p>
<p>"Fuck you," Yennefer spat.</p>
<p>Tissaia looked horrified at what she'd said and didn't make any attempt to pretend otherwise. It seemed she'd finally lost her control.</p>
<p>Yennefer walked away from Tissaia and stormed inside. She took the steps two at a time and slammed her shoulder into the door to the spare bedroom and charged around the room flinging her discarded clothes from the party into her bag. On her way out she slammed the door shut and one of the paintings on the opposite wall swayed. Yennefer put her palm against the glass and stopped the painting in a crooked position that she was pleased to know would drive Tissaia nuts.</p>
<p>She flung her bag over her shoulder and barged past Tissaia who was watching her from the top of the stairs like a petrified ghost. Tissaia stepped back and must have missed the step - no doubt because of the ridiculously tall heels that she was insisted on wearing around the house - because she lost her balance. Yennefer dropped her bag and it rolled down the staircase. She reached out and stepped forwards and grabbed Tissaia's waist to steady her.</p>
<p>She felt the unsteady rise and fall of Tissaia's chest below her breasts and noticed that her hands were clutching at her shirt. When Tissaia had caught her breath she let go of Yennefer and tried to step back. Yennefer felt something tug on her arms and realized that she was still holding Tissaia's waist. She quickly withdrew her hands and hurried down the stairs. Her bag had spilt clothes and toiletries all over the steps and she kicked them down to the floor and bundled them back into the bag and zipped it up. She made it to the front door without any other romcom styled accidents or mishaps occurring, and pulled open the front door.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked behind her and saw Tissaia sitting at the bottom of the stairs and looking out the window. Unable to see her face because of the handrail, Yennefer paused and stared at the side of her head from the doorway. Some small part of her had been hoping that Tissaia might go after her, but she should have known better. No one had ever chased her down before. She wasn't worth it. Yennefer looked away and stepped into the blindingly white corridor outside Tissaia's flat.</p>
<p>"I already lost Pavetta to this. I don't want to lose you too," Tissaia said quietly.</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped and turned around.</p>
<p>"I was there the night that she died," said Tissaia. "I saw her and Duny sneaking off in the night and I asked her not to go, but she didn't listen."</p>
<p>Yennefer stood awkwardly in the doorway and looked out of the window to check there hadn't been an apocalypse or solar eclipse scheduled for this morning that she hadn't heard about because Tissaia was not acting normally. She had half a mind to ask Tissaia whether she was feeling like herself or if she'd recently had any close encounters of the third kind. One of the care workers at the home Yennefer had been sent to had donated her Star Trek: Voyager box set to the orphanage and she had occasionally watched it with Triss when she had nothing better to do. In one of the episodes a Vulcan, a race of space elves that showed no emotions, lost control of his emotions because of some sci-fi and science shit she couldn't remember. The episode bared a remarkable similarity with what she was witnessing.</p>
<p>Something had set Tissaia off and she was behaving like a normal, emotional and irrational human being and Yennefer didn't like it at all. It felt wrong in so many ways, like when someone you've known for years changes their appearance dramatically, or when you're given sedatives for an operation that mean you can't feel your legs, or when you eat pineapple on pizza. It just wasn't right and Yennefer couldn't leave until she'd fixed it. She could be angry with Tissaia another time. Yennefer wondered if this was what empathy was supposed to feel like.</p>
<p>She stepped back inside the flat, closed the door and threw her bag on the sofa then sat on the stairs. Tissaia was slumped over on the second to last step as though whatever support mechanisms she used to maintain her rigid posture had dismantled themselves. Yennefer waited a bit to see if Tissaia would speak and held her hand firmly when she didn't. Tissaia looked up and regarded her for a moment. Her eyes glistened and she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand.</p>
<p>"I should have tried harder," said Tissaia. "I should have done more. Maybe, if I'd gone with them-"</p>
<p>"Then you might have died too," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Most of what she knew about Pavetta's death had come from online articles and news reports. Calanthe didn't like to talk about her daughter and Yennefer had seen enough bloody nosed journalist walking out of her office to know better than to ask about her. Pavetta's death had been reported as a tragic accident after she fell overboard when she and her husband got caught in a storm while they had been sailing alone at night off the coast of Gors Velen. Duny, Pavetta's partner, had survived and been found adrift on their wrecked boat in the early hours of the morning by the coast guard. He had told police that during the storm he had seen Pavetta fall into the sea and that just after that he had been struck on the back of the head and knocked out.</p>
<p>The coast guard and an army of volunteers had taken to the sea and the sky to find her, but, to no one's great surprise, their search turned up nothing and Pavetta was regarded as missing at sea and presumed dead. Her death was reported as a tragedy by local news, but after a week or two, when the story had started to fade from people's mind, the media decided that it was also a scandal.</p>
<p>They pointed blame at Pavetta's mother, Calanthe, for allowing her young daughter to marry a man that was almost twice her age. It was revealed in flashing headlines that Pavetta and Duny had only met each other once before they asked for Calanthe's blessing to get married, and she had given it. She had even married Eist, Pavetta's step-father, alongside her daughter in a hastily arranged marriage. People started to believe that it was her fault that her daughter had gone sailing late at night with a man that neither she hardly knew, and though there were rumours that Duny had murdered Pavetta because he had profited greatly from him wife's death, blame was still directed at Calanthe, the mother, for lack of suspicion or care. It wasn't reasonable to expect a mother not to worry that her daughter's partner might have murderous intent.</p>
<p>After the accident, Duny fell off the radar and though the police never found evidence of foul play, Yennefer knew that Calanthe was convinced that her daughter had been murdered. Calanthe had never told her why she harboured that suspicion and Yennefer had simply put it down to guilt. Now she was reconsidering.</p>
<p>"Do you believe Calanthe?" Yennefer asked. "Do you think he killed her?"</p>
<p>"I'm the one who told Calanthe that's what happened," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>That surprised Yennefer. Tissaia didn't seem the sort to make accusations without proof. She must have known something that the police and the paper didn't.</p>
<p>"What made you think it wasn't an accident?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>Tissaia sighed and started to smooth out the creases in her jeans. "When Pavetta married Duny, she changed. She became quiet and reserved and stopped smiling like she used to. She stopped turning up to events and gatherings, and I hardly saw her anymore and when we did meet up, he would always be there. Duny became her shadow. He followed her around and constantly looked over her shoulder and checked on her. It was suffocating."</p>
<p>Tissaia started to run her thighs with enough force to worry Yennefer that she might give herself a friction burn. She reached behind Tissaia with one arm and pulled her hands away from her legs and held them. After a pause, Tissaia squeezed her fingers and looked at her with a sad smile.</p>
<p>"You think he was controlling?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Yes," said Tissaia, "and I believe he was violent towards her too."</p>
<p>"You saw him hit her?"</p>
<p>"No, but I noticed that she started to wear long sleeves and jackets all the time, even when the weather didn't call for it. I tried to voice my concerns to Calanthe, but she didn't believe me. She said I was being paranoid and jealous, and I believed her. I stopped asking questions and a few weeks later, Pavetta died."</p>
<p>Tissaia turned back to the window and Yennefer wondered what she was looking at, if she was looking at anything at all. A few strands of hair had come loose from her bun, and Yennefer tucked a strand behind Tissaia's ear.</p>
<p>"You blame yourself for what happened, don't you?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"If I had been more persistent, then maybe she wouldn't have got on that boat with him," said Tissaia. "This time, I won't make the same mistake." Tissaia sat sideways on the step and held Yennefer's arms. "Will you listen to me, Yennefer, please? I'm not going to change my mind about this, about Istredd, and if I can't persuade you to leave him then… Then I don't think it's a good idea for us to keep seeing each other. I can't go through that again. I don't want to watch you get hurt."</p>
<p>And Yennefer didn't want to lose her. Not again. She had always felt that she deserved Istredd, perhaps in part because his way of loving, or that's what she had used to call it, was so similar to her father's. But regardless of the love that she believed her chaotic, and destructive nature warranted, Tissaia and the others – Philippa, Sabrina and Triss - didn't deserve him.</p>
<p>Yennefer closed her eyes and gripped Tissaia's shoulders. She leant forwards and pulled Tissaia towards her and rested her forehead against hers.</p>
<p>"You saved me," Yennefer whispered, "I won't ever forget that. I'll give Istredd a few days to calm down and then I'll leave him."</p>
<p>She heard Tissaia let out a slow breath and pulled her into a hug that had them clinging to each other like two characters that had just gone through the emotional climax of a film. It was exaggerated and needy, and it felt good.</p>
<p>"Do you want to stay here while you wait?" Tissaia asked when they parted.</p>
<p>"You've already done enough for me," said Yennefer. "I don't want to intrude. I'll ask Phil and Sabrina to put me up."</p>
<p>"But he knows where they live. I'd prefer it if you stayed here."</p>
<p>"Then I will."</p>
<p>They sat contentedly in silence pressed up against each other like two children in a class photo. Yennefer stared out of the window and tried to process the emotional roller coaster that had been her Saturday morning. She was pulled from her thoughts by a knock at the door and the sudden loss of Tissaia's body against her left side.</p>
<p>"You should probably go and take a shower," Tissaia said as she stepped down to the floor. "There are towels in the spare bedroom."</p>
<p>"What charming hospitality," said Yennefer. "Are you saying that I smell?"</p>
<p>"No, but you do look dreadful."</p>
<p>The impatient prick standing at the door knocked again.</p>
<p>"I'm coming," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She made towards the door and Yennefer got up and headed upstairs. Tissaia was right, she did have some unsightly bed head.</p>
<p>"You have five seconds to step back before I call security," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer turned around and went down a few steps until she could see the front door. Though she couldn't see him clearly because Tissaia was blocking her view, there was no mistaking the imposing figure filling the doorway with his foot lodged under the door.</p>
<p>"I know she's here. Let me in, I want to talk to her," said Istredd.</p>
<p>"I will not warn you again," said Tissaia. "Leave now, or-"</p>
<p>Istredd pushed Tissaia out of his way and strode into her flat. He looked around and spotted her.</p>
<p>"Come down here now," he said, pointing to the floor. "We need to talk."</p>
<p>Yennefer looked past him at Tissaia, who had just turned away from the intercom panel by the door, and watched her walk past Istredd and up the stairs. She turned Yennefer around and started pushing her forwards.</p>
<p>"Into the bedroom," she said. "Go."</p>
<p>Yennefer hurled herself up the steps with Tissaia on her normally sized heels and Istredd on Tissaia's outrageously large ones. Halfway up Yennefer heard Tissaia take a sharp intake of breath behind and turned around. That was how she came to be looking straight at Tissaia when her eyes went wide and she fell down the stairs.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>UH OH!</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Saving Private Tissaia</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warning: this chapter contains domestic abuse (physical violence: backhand, and emotional abuse: threats and controlling behaviour). If you become distressed while reading the chapter, please refer to your national domestic abuse helpline.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tissaia tumbled down half a dozen polished steps with a series of audible thumps and a sickening cracking noise that sounded like it had come straight out of an episode of 'Causality'. Worse still was that Tissaia barely made a sound. She landed in a heap on the floor with her arms and legs spread out over the floor and the bottom steps.</p>
<p>Yennefer shouldered past Istredd and took the steps two at a time. She stepped over Tissaia's right leg on the second to last step – was she supposed to be able to bend like that and how had that heel snapped? – and knelt near Tissaia's face. Her left cheek was pressed against the floorboards where the clothes from Yennefer's bags had similarly been sprawled out moments ago. Her eyes were closed and the reason for that, and her silence, as far as Yennefer could determine, was that gash across Tissaia's forehead that was leaking out blood like a broken faucet. Yennefer was by no means a medical expert – the only medical advice she could give was how to cure a bad hangover – but it didn't take a genius to know that a head injury like that spelt trouble. Blood was streaming down Tissaia's face and into her hair making the scene look progressively more like something out of the media adaptation of Stephen King's 'Carrie'. The nineteen seventy-six film, not early two-thousands tv film. We don't talk about that.</p>
<p>"Tissaia," Yennefer said as she gently tapped the other woman's face. "Tissaia can you hear me? Open your eyes."</p>
<p>Tissaia did not respond, confirming Yennefer's suspicion that she was well and truly knocked the fuck out.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked up at Istredd. "What have you done?"</p>
<p>"It was an accident," he said. "She should have moved out of my way."</p>
<p>"Call an ambulance," Yennefer shouted.</p>
<p>She turned her attention back to Tissaia and her who-knows-how-serious head wound. Yennefer pulled Tissaia's hair away from the open cut and took off her hoodie. It was warm and comfy and said in bold white letters 'Aretuza University' on the back which probably meant that it had cost a pretty penny too, but it was also Philippa's, so Yennefer didn't feel too bad about dipping the sleeve in Tissaia's blood. She dabbed at the streaks of blood on Tissaia's face and then at her headwound to try and get a good look at the damage, but the angle wasn't right and the blood didn't want to stop rushing out. The sleeve quickly soaked through and Yennefer switched to using the hood instead. She pressed scrunched up fabric hard against Tissaia's forehead and thought she heard her patient moan. Yennefer kept her eyes on Tissaia's face and when twenty to thirty seconds had passed, she noticed that her eyelids had started to twitch.</p>
<p>"Tissaia, you need to wake up," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia's eyes opened a fraction and then she screwed them shut and whimpered.</p>
<p>"Look at me," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>After deciding which of her hands was the least stained with blood, Yennefer began to stroke her slightly red-stained cheek with her thumb, her cleanest digit. She hoped that it might calm Tissaia down and help her come around. She had said she was no medical expert. When Yennefer called her name again Tissaia tried to open her eyes for her, but Yennefer only caught a snatch of watery blue irises before Tissaia moaned in pain and curled in on herself. It was only a slight movement, but Yennefer took it as a sign that perhaps she hadn't broken anything besides the heel of her right shoe.</p>
<p>"Yen…" Tissaia whispered.</p>
<p>"I'm here," said Yennefer. "Will you try to keep your eyes open for me?"</p>
<p>"Can't. Head hurts," Tissaia mumbled.</p>
<p>"Are you hurting anywhere else?"</p>
<p>"Everything hurts."</p>
<p>"I need you to sit up for me so I can get a proper look at you."</p>
<p>Tissaia made a noise in her throat that Yennefer hoped was an 'okay'. She pulled Tissaia's arms around her neck and put her hands under her armpits to pull her into a seating position. Tissaia winced and bit her lip and tried to put her palm against her head. Yennefer caught her wrist and directed Tissaia's hand to her thigh instead. She kept hold of Tissaia because she wasn't sure whether she was capable of sitting upright unsupported and didn't intend to find out and turned her to the side a little to get a better look at her injury. It was about two and a half inches long and it didn't seem too deep, though the amount of blood that it was letting out would make you think otherwise. In Yennefer's medical opinion, it wasn't as bad as it looked.</p>
<p>With her load feeling just that little bit lighter, Yennefer leant back and sat on her heels. Tissaia was watching her from behind half-closed eyelids and her head was rolling about in the same manner that a baby's head does, or a drunkard's. She was completely out of it and that left her expression clear and unguarded. Without her mask, Tissaia looked vulnerable. Yennefer didn't have to strain to see that she was scared and confused and – though it might have been wishful thinking – she thought Tissaia might be looking to her for help.</p>
<p>Yennefer smiled and held out her arms. "Come here," she said.</p>
<p>She leant her back against the wall and gathered Tissaia up in her arms and sat her between her legs. Tissaia practically melted into her chest. She tucked her head under Yennefer's chin and clutched at her shirt. Yennefer folded her legs around Tissaia and held her close.</p>
<p>Istredd knelt in front of them and Yennefer saw a green bag in his hand that must have been a first aid kit. How very responsible, Yennefer thought, and how very Tissaia. She allowed Istredd to clean Tissaia's cut with a sterile wipe and whispered soft nothings – at least that's what the romantics liked to call them – into Tissaia's hair and kissed her temple when she whimpered and tried to pull away from the hand that was hurting her again. When Istredd finished he pulled out a bandage which Yennefer took and held against the cut.</p>
<p>"I need you to stay awake," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Okay," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Istredd sat down on the third step from the floor and watched his hands while he rubbed his palm.</p>
<p>"When will the ambulance be here?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"I didn't call an ambulance," he said. "She'll-"</p>
<p>"Give me your phone."</p>
<p>Istredd looked up. "What?"</p>
<p>"Give me your phone and I'll do it." Yennefer held out her hand expectantly.</p>
<p>Istredd got up, stepped around them and came to stand between them and the door. "No, she doesn't need an ambulance," he said. "She's fine. We can look after her and sort this out ourselves."</p>
<p>And keep it between us, Yennefer thought. Istredd was trying to cover up his mistake and he didn't want to get the emergency services involved in case they started asking questions. But what was he planning to do once Tissaia had recovered?</p>
<p>Yennefer took a deep breath and resisted the urge to shout 'are you blind' in Istredd's face. Tissaia didn't need a splitting headache on top of her head injury. "Does she look fine to you," she said instead. "She's hit her head and fallen down half a flight of stairs. She needs help."</p>
<p>Istredd turned his back on them and started to pace up and down the living room. Yennefer wasn't going to get any help from him. She patted down her pockets trying to find her phone and remembered that she had left it upstairs on Tissaia's bed. She could run upstairs and get it, which would allow her to call for help in privacy, but she didn't want to leave Tissaia by herself or with Istredd, and she wasn't strong enough to carry her up the stairs.</p>
<p>No, she had to get her hands on Istredd's phone or use the intercom to call reception. Unless Tissaia had a phone on her. Yennefer patted her down and found a phone sticking out of an annoyingly small pocket because God hated giving women usefully sized pockets, or any pockets at all. Tissaia's smartphone had been smashed by her trip down the stairs, but Yennefer managed to access the screen with the option to call the emergency number without unlocking the phone. She pressed it and held the phone to her ears. It had just started to ring when Istredd snatched it from her and silenced their call for help.</p>
<p>Yennefer tried to take it back. "What are you-"</p>
<p>"I said she doesn't need an ambulance," Istredd said, seizing her outstretched arm and throwing it down. "Let's move her onto the sofa." He grabbed Tissaia's upper arm and tried to pull her up and out of Yennefer's grasp.</p>
<p>"Let go," Tissaia screamed.</p>
<p>Yennefer dug her nails into the back of Istredd's hand and he yelled and let go. Tissaia settled back against her chest.</p>
<p>"Don't touch her," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Istredd glared at her and did what Yennefer had recently assured Tissaia he would never do. He backhanded her, and the force of the blow threatened to give Yennefer whiplash.</p>
<p>"Leave her alone," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She wriggled about in Yennefer's arms in an attempt to get free and have at Istredd, and Yennefer tightened her hold. She wrapped both arms around Tissaia and kept her side pressed against her chest. Yennefer couldn't rely on her help this time. It was her turn to step up and take the lead hero role for once.</p>
<p>"Don't you dare talk to me like that," Istredd shouted in Yennefer's face. "Who do you think you are? Give her to me."</p>
<p>"No," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Istredd crouched down and tried to pull Yennefer's arms off Tissaia. His grip felt strong enough to snap her bones and it was a battle she would lose in time, but she couldn't give up that easily. Not this time.</p>
<p>Yennefer kicked Istredd in the knee and he fell backwards onto his arse. She stood up and pulled Tissaia to her feet. Tissaia's knees buckled and Yennefer caught her with an arm about her waist. She hoisted one of Tissaia's arms around her neck and adjust her grip of her waist. Yennefer stepped towards the stairs and Tissaia staggered alongside her like she'd had some Irish coffee for breakfast. Yennefer had to bear most of her weight as she tried to drag her upstairs. If they could get to the bedroom, she could lock them inside and ring for help.</p>
<p>They made it up the first few steps before she heard Istredd's heavy boot thud onto the bottom step. Yennefer was just about to tell Tissaia to go upstairs and hide when the unexpected happened and everyone in the room froze. Someone had knocked on the door.</p>
<p>"Help. I need help," Yennefer shouted.</p>
<p>She felt the stairs vibrate through the thin soles of her ripped trainers and dropped Tissaia onto the step. Istredd grabbed a handful of her hair and forced her down two steps.</p>
<p>"What are you doing, you crazy bitch," Istredd shouted.</p>
<p>"It's over, Istredd," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Another slap across the face knocked Yennefer backwards and she felt something warm against her upper lip and guessed that her nose had started to bleed. Istredd advanced on her and Yennefer jumped on Tissaia. She grabbed her wrist as she swung at Istredd and pushed her back before she could paint a bigger target on her back than she could hide. Yennefer pressed Tissaia up against the stair rail and gripped the two metal poles either side of Tissaia's head. She covered her friend's body and swore on her grave that she felt Istredd's shadow fall across her back. She braced herself for the inevitable. But nothing came.</p>
<p>The door to Tissaia's apartment burst open and two security guards stared at them from the corridor. Tissaia had followed through on her threat. When Istredd had forced his way into the flat, she had used the panel by the door to call for security. She'd had him pegged from the start. The security personnel took one look at them and pulled Istredd away by the scruff of his shirt. They escorted him downstairs and promised to keep an eye on him while they waited for the police. When they were alone, Yennefer helped Tissaia down the stairs then picked her up.</p>
<p>"Put me down," said Tissaia. "I can still walk."</p>
<p>"Humour me," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia sighed and wrapped her hands around Yennefer's neck. She deposited her in an armchair facing away from the window and the bright morning light that must be wreaking havoc on the headache Tissaia undoubtedly had and sat on the armrest next to her.</p>
<p>"How are you feeling?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"Better," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Good."</p>
<p>At some point during the kerfuffle, Tissaia had picked up the discarded bandage and was not holding it against her forehead. Yennefer pulled her hand away to check the cut again and felt Tissaia's unusually expressive eyes boring into her.</p>
<p>"You stood up to him," she said.</p>
<p>"I did," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Why now?" Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>"Because this wasn't just about me anymore."</p>
<p>"I don't-"</p>
<p>"Don't worry about it," Yennefer said, and stroked Tissaia's hair. "Just rest."</p>
<p>A female security officer came up to administer some basic first aid and passed Tissaia off onto the ambulance crew when they arrived. They checked Tissaia over and said that they needed to take her to the hospital for a few scans and tests. The paramedics were loading her into a wheelchair when the police arrived to join the party and asked Yennefer to come with them to the station.</p>
<p>"Can't you take my statement at the hospital?" said Yennefer. "She needs me."</p>
<p>"It's okay, Yen," said Tissaia. "I'll be fine. You need to do this. You need to tell them everything."</p>
<p>"I will."</p>
<p>"Promise me."</p>
<p>"I promise."</p>
<p>The paramedics wheeled Tissaia out the front door and before Yennefer went with the police she fetched her phone from upstairs and asked Calanthe to meet Tissaia at the hospital. Calanthe agreed, after making Yennefer promise she would give her the full explanation later, and with that peace of mind Yennefer went down to the police station. She started at the very beginning, telling the female police officer about the first time Istredd had displayed controlling behaviour and ended with how he had pushed Tissaia down the stairs and hit her when she wouldn't let her go. They asked her to verify that her father had abused her as a child, because it wasn't uncommon for female child abuse victims to become domestic violence in later life, and after a few hours she climbed into a taxi and headed to the hospital where Tissaia was waiting for her.</p>
<hr/>
<p>The hospital was a maze of bustling corridors and sprawling builds that had been dropped around the main building over several decades wherever there happened to be space. The result was a messy and illogical layout that had to make you wonder whether anyone in charge understood the term 'planning ahead'. In the taxi, Yennefer had texted Calanthe to ask where they had taken Tissaia, and after ten minutes of running around the hospital in circles and screaming at people for directions, she found the right place. The ward was quiet and well-light with unflatteringly strong lights. It had white walls and green floors and smelt of hand sanitizer, disinfectant, and cheap, artificial lemon air freshener. There were rows of bed on either side of the room and the nurses pottered about without any urgency. This was where people came to rest and recover, or to wait for surgery as she had in Lyria when she'd had her spine straightened with metal plates.</p>
<p>Yennefer spotted Calanthe sitting by a bed on the far side of the room and went over. Tissaia was almost entirely hidden under the bedsheets and a hospital gown that was at the very least two sizes too big for her. The gash on her forehead had been dressed and Yennefer could see a few bruises on her bare arms. Her face had been cleaned up and she seemed to be in a deep – perhaps medicated- sleep.</p>
<p>"Yennefer, your face," said Calanthe. Yennefer had seen herself in the car window; her right cheek was bruised, and her nose was slightly swollen. "What-"</p>
<p>"Will she be alright?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"She'll be fine. She has a concussion and some bruising, but no broken bones. A week of rest and she'll be right as rain."</p>
<p>Yennefer nodded and sat down on the edge of the bed.</p>
<p>"What happened to you two?" Calanthe asked.</p>
<p>"It's all my fault," said Yennefer. "Istredd came to her flat looking for me. Tissaia got in his way and he pushed her down the stairs. She could have…" Yennefer threw her head back and blinked a few times. It hadn't crossed her mind how bad things could have been and when it did, just then, it was an uncomfortable feeling. "She could have died because of me."</p>
<p>"But she didn't," said Calanthe, "and there's no lasting damage."</p>
<p>"She got hurt because of me. What if I lose her again?"</p>
<p>"You won't." Calanthe dragged her chair to the other side of the bed and sat in front of Yennefer. "I've known Tissaia since she was a child. She won't hold this against you."</p>
<p>"I've reported Istredd to the police."</p>
<p>"Then at least something good came from this. I hope he fucking rots in prison."</p>
<p>"Actually, she'd already convinced me to leave before this happened," said Yennefer. But life was fucking cruel had to throw one last curveball at her.</p>
<p>"Should I be offended?" said Calanthe. "I feel like I should be offended. I've been telling you the same thing for months and you've never listened to me. Do you only take advice from the pretty ones?"</p>
<p>"I like to have something nice to look at when someone's trying to talk me out of a terrible life choice," said Yennefer. "And your face doesn't quite do it for me."</p>
<p>"Have you always thought with your pussy, or just since you met her?"</p>
<p>"I don't see her that way."</p>
<p>Calanthe raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh, but Philippa thinks otherwise, and we both know that girl can smell gay panic from a mile away."</p>
<p>"Yes, and we also know that Philippa can't tell the difference between finding a woman attractive and wanting her between your legs." Yennefer couldn't deny that she thought Tissaia was beautiful, but that didn't mean she harboured a deep-seated desire to climb into her expensive skinny jeans. She was attracted to men and only men. That one girl she had kissed outside a fish and chip shop in Vengerberg didn't count. That had been a mistake.</p>
<p>"Well, you were right to listen to her," said Calanthe. "She's a smart girl, and she'd got a good heart. I trust her to look out for you, but you need to do the same for her."</p>
<p>"I will," said Yennefer, "and I won't let something like this happen again."</p>
<p>"You better not, or you'll have me to answer to." Calanthe looked at Tissaia and her expression softened. "She can't go through this again."</p>
<p>"She told me about Pavetta, about what she suspected. That's what made me listen."</p>
<p>Calanthe nodded slowly and got to her feet. She walked over to the window between Tissaia's bed and the next one over and placed her palm against the glass. Yennefer couldn't be sure, but she thought Calanthe might be facing out to sea. She always seemed to know which direction it was. Tissaia murmured something unintelligible in her sleep and buried her head further into the pillow. A strand of hair fell down her face and over her eyes. Yennefer reached out to brush it away but was beaten to the mark. Calanthe stepped towards the bed, leant over Tissaia, and tucked the piece of hair behind her ear then rubbed her cheek.</p>
<p>"I'll never forgive myself for not taking her seriously," said Calanthe. "I don't know whether believing her would have stopped Pavetta getting on that boat, but it would have saved her a lot of pain." Calanthe straightened up and leant against the wall. "I know that she thinks she gave up on my daughter and left her for dead, and if I hadn't told her to stop, if I had listened to her, then maybe she wouldn't have blamed herself. I wish I'd done more for her after Pavetta died. She got into a lot of trouble with her family for claiming that it wasn't an accident, and I was too caught up trying to get revenge that I didn't help her. I shouldn't have left her alone. That's not what Pavetta would have wanted."</p>
<p>"You could still make amends," said Yennefer. "Maybe, once she knows that you were here, she'll-"</p>
<p>"It's too late. Tissaia doesn't need me anymore. She's got you." Calanthe smiled sadly at her, and a moment later it morphed into her usual self-confident and mocking smirk. It was almost convincing. "We should go. Give her some peace," said Calanthe. "They want to keep her overnight, and you should probably get some rest too. You look almost as fucked up as she does."</p>
<p>"In a minute," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"I'll wait outside."</p>
<p>Calanthe strode up to the door to the ward and pushed them open like she was trying to strike a good pose for an album cover. When the doors finished swinging shut behind her, Yennefer scooted further up the bed. She smoothed out Tissaia's hair and arranged it neatly around her, and adjusted her hospital gown so that it wasn't hanging loosely off one of her shoulders. Satisfied with her work, Yennefer hopped off the bed and tucked Tissaia in.</p>
<p>"I'll see you tomorrow," she whispered.</p>
<p>She bent forwards and planted a kiss on Tissaia's forehead then hurried out the door before Calanthe could start to wonder what was taking her so long.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Okay so maybe it was a bit of a bad fall but it all worked out in the end... right? (please don't hate me)</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Dressing Up</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The following morning Yennefer woke up to a text from Tissaia. Her parents wanted her to come home while she recovered and when Yennefer asked if she would have a chance to see her before she left, Tissaia said that the car was already on its way. Yennefer threw herself out of bed and banged on the door to Calanthe and Eist's bedroom. After they had helped her collect a few things from her flat they had dragged her home with them like a stray cat and insisted on putting her up until Istredd had moved out and the locks had been changed.</p>
<p>"Tissaia is getting picked up from the hospital this morning," Yennefer shouted. "We need to get there before she's gone."</p>
<p>Without waiting for a response Yennefer darted back into her room and locked the door for safety. Calanthe was not a morning person and no amount of familiarity or love could protect you from her rage when you dared wake her before the sun had started to fall. But a door might help. Yennefer waited for the shouting, thumping and banging from next door to subside and ventured outside. She ran downstairs and jumped off the last step to dodge a pair of boots that Calanthe had tried to drop on her head and took cover in the kitchen. She grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl and found her shoes hiding under the living room sofa. She carried them outside and slammed the door shut before Calanthe could finish thundering down the stairs and rearm herself.</p>
<p>Yennefer sat on the bonnet of Calanthe's car and put her shoes on. She finished eating her apple and threw the core into the bushes – it's no littering when it's biodegradable - and checked her messages. Philippa had sent her a text teasing her about her radio silence and had asked if she and Tissaia were having some alone time. Yennefer ignored her message and went to read what Triss had sent her. She said that Sabrina had told her about what had happened at the party and was asking whether she was okay. Yennefer started to type a reply then deleted the unsent text and rang Triss instead.</p>
<p>She answered immediately and after she had been assaulted by infamous bombard of rapid-fire questions – Are you okay? What happened? Where are you? How's Tissaia? Are you two dating. Philippa said you're dating - Yennefer filled her in about what had happened after the party and set a few things – thanks a lot Phil – straight.</p>
<p>"What happens next?" Triss asked when Yennefer finished.</p>
<p>"I'm going to visit Tissaia," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"After that?"</p>
<p>"Go back to sleep."</p>
<p>Triss sighed and Yennefer could picture her pinching the bridge of her nose. "What are you going to do about Istredd," she said, "about your report?"</p>
<p>"I have to go," said Yennefer. "Calanthe's ready. Thanks for calling. Bye."</p>
<p>"Wait-"</p>
<p>Yennefer hung up and texted Tissaia: Have you left yet?</p>
<p>Tissaia replied a few seconds later. It read: Yes. For another half an hour.</p>
<p>Not good, thought Yennefer. It would take them at least ten minutes to get there and the traffic could add anywhere between five and twenty-five minutes onto the journey.</p>
<p>Yennefer texted Calanthe: Hurry up or we'll miss her!</p>
<p>Calanthe replied with a picture of her right hand with one finger raised.</p>
<p>She came out after five minutes dressed in tracksuit bottoms and one of Eist's grey jumpers and had a family-sized thermal flask clutched in her hand that she definetly wasn't going to share. Calanthe unlocked the car and Yennefer climbed into the front passenger seat. She strapped herself in and turned on the radio when Calanthe had turned the engine on. She browsed through the stations and Calanthe slapped her hand away.</p>
<p>"I'm not listening to any of your rubbish," she said. Calanthe tapped around on the touchscreen and some one-hit-wonder from a band that had been famous in the time of the dinosaurs started playing through the car speakers.</p>
<p>"I'm glad you're not in charge of The Lioness' music," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Calanthe put her seat belt on and reversed the car out of her driveway. "You wouldn't know good music from trash if it jumped up and bit you in the ear," she said.</p>
<p>They joined the Sunday morning traffic heading into the city centre and then took the main road to the hospital through the high street and rows of student housing. After twenty minutes of stopping and starting and swearing over and under the dashboard, Calanthe pulled up in the drop off zone and Yennefer got out. She hurried through the corridors and made it to the ward with five minutes left on the clock. The bed that Tissaia had been sleeping in was surrounded by a privacy curtain and Yennefer could see a silhouette behind the flimsy blue fabric pulling on a shirt.</p>
<p>"Tissaia?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Just a minute," said Tissaia. She pulled on a pair of trousers and came out from behind the curtains in yesterday's slightly bloodied and wrinkled clothes.</p>
<p>"Are you leaving?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"Yes," said Tissaia. "My ride will be here in a few minutes."</p>
<p>"I'll walk you there."</p>
<p>Yennefer turned around and Tissaia grabbed her wrist.</p>
<p>"Wait," she said. "Look at me."</p>
<p>Yennefer did as she asked and Tissaia let go of her arm and brushed the hair away from her face. She looked at her bruised eye and cheek and gently traced the marks with her fingers.</p>
<p>"He hit you," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"He did," said Yennefer. "Don't you remember?"</p>
<p>"No. How did it happen?"</p>
<p>"I tried to call an ambulance, but he wouldn't let me and then he tried to take you."</p>
<p>"What do you mean?"</p>
<p>Tissaia rubbed her bare arms and Yennefer noticed the goosebumps on her skin. She took off her jackets and draped it across Tissaia's shoulders, who smiled at her in thanks.</p>
<p>"I was holding you and when I wouldn't let go, he hit me," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"I do remember you looking after me," said Tissaia. "I suppose I should thank you."</p>
<p>Yennefer shook her head. "Don't. It was my fault that you got hurt."</p>
<p>Tissaia gave her shoulders a squeeze. "I might not remember much about yesterday, Yennefer," she said, "but I know that you didn't push me." Tissaia's phone rang and she stepped to the side to answer the call. "My car is outside," she said a moment later. "Will you walk me out?"</p>
<p>"Of course," said Yennefer. "But we're using the elevator."</p>
<p>"Agreed," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer took Tissaia's arm and escorted her through the hospital. Though Tissaia tried to put on a brave face Yennefer noticed how her breath got caught in her throat and how her eyes narrowed and her hand rubbed a spot below her left breast every couple of steps. Yennefer let go of Tissaia's arm and drew it around her neck to take more of her weight. Tissaia said she was fine but Yennefer insisted. When they reached the entrance lobby Yennefer made Tissaia sit down to catch her breath and then they continued towards the car park where they were greeted by a stern-looking woman in her mid-fifties who might have had a side job as a Professor Mcgonagall lookalike. Her name was Mrs Elizabeth Grant and before she had become the housekeeper, she used to be Tissaia's nanny.</p>
<p>"Come along, Tissaia," said Mrs Grant. "Your mother and father are anxious to see you returned home safely."</p>
<p>She stepped forward and snatched Tissaia from Yennefer's grasp and led her across the car park. Yennefer followed behind them and Mrs Grant rounded on her.</p>
<p>"What are you following us for, girl?" she said. "Go back inside and help someone else, we-"</p>
<p>"Mrs Grant," said Tissaia, "this is my friend, Yennefer."</p>
<p>"Don't interrupt," Mrs Grant snapped, scowling at Tissaia. "I taught you better than that."</p>
<p>Yennefer frowned. Who did this woman think she was? She shouldn't be talking to Tissaia like that, especially not when she was sick.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," Tissaia said, bowing her head. "This is my friend Miss Yennefer Vengerberg. She's been looking after me."</p>
<p>"I should hope so," said Mrs Grant, "seeing as she's the one that got you mixed up in this."</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped in her tracks and almost missed the irritated look Tissaia shot her former.</p>
<p>"That's not-"</p>
<p>"You must be tired, Tissaia," said Mrs Grant the hypocrite. "We can talk about this later."</p>
<p>The old hag pulled Tissaia further away and bundled her into a fancy black car with tinted windows that was being attended to by a pot-bellied man who smiled at Tissaia when he held the door open for her and Mrs Grant. Yennefer watched the car pull away and then wandered around the car park looking for Calanthe</p>
<p>"What's the matter with you?" Calanthe asked when Yennefer climbed into her car and slammed the door. "Didn't get a kiss goodbye?"</p>
<p>"Didn't even get to say goodbye," said Yennefer. "They dragged her away before I could do any more harm."</p>
<p>"Who did?"</p>
<p>"Mrs Bitch Grant."</p>
<p>"Oh, fuck that old wretched hag," said Calanthe. "Don't listen to a thing she says, I'm pretty sure she feeds off other people's misery."</p>
<p>Yennefer tucked her legs under her and stared out the window as Calanthe pulled out of the car park and drove towards the city centre. She was upset about what Mrs Grant had said to her and the fact that she didn't seem to want Tissaia anywhere near her. Did Tissaia's parents blame her what happened too? She had intended to ask Tissaia if she could visit, but now she wasn't sure that the Lawrences would let her near their daughter ever again, and she voiced her concern to Calanthe when she threatened to pull over and make her walk home if she didn't stop moping.</p>
<p>"You're right," said Calanthe, "they won't let you in, but don't take it too personally."</p>
<p>"How am I supposed to take it?" Yennefer said irritably.</p>
<p>"It's just business. Tissaia's parents don't want her drawing attention to herself in case the press gets a hold of the story. Give it a week or two and things will be back to normal and you'll have your girl back."</p>
<p>"Okay, firstly, Tissaia is not my girl. And second, why don't they want this getting out? Surely, it's good publicity. Tissaia Laurence saves poor orphan girl from monstrous boyfriend," Yennefer said, gesturing in an arc with her hand.</p>
<p>"That's what you'd think," said Calanthe, "but her father thinks otherwise. When we were in the hospital Tissaia told me that her father covered up what happened at the bridge and that he told her off for interfering."</p>
<p>"What? He'd rather she let me die?"</p>
<p>"I don't know. I've never understood that man."</p>
<p>"What else did you two talk about?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"Not much," said Calanthe. "Tissaia wasn't really all there."</p>
<p>When they got back to the house Yennefer went upstairs, changed into some pyjamas and hid under the covers. Calanthe made her get up for lunch and dinner, but otherwise, she left her to wallow in her misery. She had a lot to think about and she couldn't stop worrying about what her relationship with Tissaia would be like when she got back. It had seemed that Calanthe had been right about Tissaia not holding her to blame for the accident, but she wasn't sure that the other Lawrences shared that opinion.</p>
<p>Yennefer ignored three phone calls from Triss and one from Philippa, and when her phone rang in the evening for the fifth time, she had already silenced it before she read the caller ID. Tissaia Lawrence. She rang her back immediately.</p>
<p>"How are things at home?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"My parents have placed me under house arrest for a few days," said Tissaia, "but it's nice to be back."</p>
<p>They talked for about an hour before Tissaia said that she was getting a headache, and they agreed to check in on each other at the same time tomorrow. Feeling reassured, Yennefer headed downstairs and joined Calanthe and Eist in the living room. Neither of them went to work that evening and they watched 'Deadpool' together like one little fucked up family.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Tissaia returned to her flat a week later. Yennefer met her outside the door and helped her move everything that Mrs Grant had picked up for her back into her room. While Tissaia had been away, someone had cleaned the blood off the floor and throw out the fresh food, leaving Tissaia with a handful of frozen goods and cans. They went out to buy some fancy ready-meals and settled down to watch 'Lesbian Vampire Killers'. It was an awful horror-comedy that Yennefer had persuaded Tissaia to watch because one of the lead characters looked a lot like her. She asked Tissaia if she had any estranged, blonde sisters. She said that she didn't.</p>
<p>After that, Yennefer didn't see Tissaia for another week. She was busy catching up with university work and Yennefer had to sort things out with her flat and the case against Istredd. A few days before Christmas, she had the locks on her door changed and moved back into her flat. The following morning, Triss turned up at her door with a suitcase (she was staying with her for the holidays), and after she unpacked, they went to Tissaia's flat to have a Christmas meal with her, Philippa and Sabrina. Triss helped Tissaia with the food preparation while Yennefer kept Philippa and Sabrina out of Tissaia's things, but aside from that, they were both unusually well-behaved. It looked like Tissaia was growing on them.</p>
<p>In the afternoon the others went out to do some last-minute Christmas shopping and Yennefer stayed behind to help Tissaia with the cleaning. She finished loading the dishwasher and put away the dinning mats while Tissaia turned on the machine. Yennefer didn't have a clue how to use it. She'd always had to clean the dishes in the sink at home because father didn't trust technology. She sat down on the sofa with the last of her wine and watched Tissaia disappear upstairs and into her bedroom. Thankfully, after the others had left, Tissaia had taken off her heels so that Yennefer wouldn't have a heart attack whenever she used the stairs. She came back down carrying a large box wrapped in violet paper which she handed to Yennefer.</p>
<p>"I thought we weren't doing Christmas presents," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"We aren't," said Tissaia. "Open it and then I'll explain."</p>
<p>Yennefer put the box in her lap, undid the small silk ribbon and tore off the paper to reveal a white box with a golden logo of three daisies wrapped around each other on the lid.</p>
<p>"You got me something from The Valley," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>It was a famous boutique owned by the designer Francesca Findabair that originated in Dol Blathanna and had quickly spread across the continent. Yennefer had gone window shopping in the Gors Velen branch a few times for inspiration but had never been able to afford anything they had to offer. Not so much as a sock.</p>
<p>"In a manner of speaking," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer threw the wrapping paper onto the floor and pulled off the lid. She could see some thick white fabric underneath a small pile of A4 photos which she recognized as pictures of some of the designs in her sketchbook. There were four in total. The first picture was of a design for a long white skirt with an intricate and detailed floral pattern. The second was a strapless dress that faded from black to white and had a layered skirt. The third was of a long purple dress that had a tight-fitting top decorated with silver beads. The last picture was of a design for a flowing blue dress with a long skirt that had a slit. Yennefer put the photos on the coffee table and picked up the white fabric and unfolded it.</p>
<p>It was a skirt; her skirt. The one she had designed in her sketchbook and which there had been a photo of. Yennefer folded it carefully and pulled out the next item. It was a black and white dress, another one of her designs, and underneath that was the purple dress and the blue one. She held out each piece of clothing and admired it with reverence. All the details were there. These were her designs alright. Yennefer folded the blue dress and put it back in the box and turned to Tissaia, who had been watching her silently with a big smile on her face.</p>
<p>"I know someone who works at The Valley," said Tissaia. "I sent them a few pictures of your designs, courtesy of Calanthe, and asked if someone could make them. I thought it would be a good idea for you to have a few pieces to show off alongside your portfolio if you ever wanted to apply for a job or an apprenticeship as a designer."</p>
<p>"I don't know what to say," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>This was the nicest thing that anyone had ever done for her. She couldn't believe that after all the trouble she had gotten her into, Tissaia was still going out of her way to help her.</p>
<p>"Most people would start with a thank you," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Screw that," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She dropped the box onto the coffee table and pulled Tissaia in for a hug. She laughed against her shoulder and Yennefer grinned. How was this woman real? This whole thing felt too good to be true.</p>
<p>"Thank you," Yennefer said when they parted. "Thank you for doing this for me, and thank you for making me feel like a terrible person because this is a wonderful gift and I haven't gotten you anything."</p>
<p>"You're welcome," said Tissaia, "and don't worry about getting me something. I think I like the idea of having you indebted to me."</p>
<p>"And what will you have me do to repay you? Murder Phil, perhaps?"</p>
<p>"That is a tempting proposition."</p>
<p>"Just say the word and she's gone, but before you make your decision, I'd like to give you something."</p>
<p>Yennefer took the blue dress out of the box and offered it to Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Oh, Yennefer, I couldn't," said Tissaia. "It's your design."</p>
<p>"But I made if for you," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia looked surprised. "For me?" she repeated.</p>
<p>"Yes," said Yennefer. "I used your measurements to design it."</p>
<p>And I thought of you while I made it, Yennefer said to herself. Tissaia had been her muse since their encounter at Philippa and Sabrina's house when she had first looked at her sketchbook. Yennefer had imagined her in every dress and skirt that she had made after that and no matter how hard she had tried, she hadn't been able to see them on anyone else.</p>
<p>"Are you sure about this?" Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>"I insist," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia took the blue dress from her and stood up. She unfolded it and held the dress out to examine it. The colour matched her eyes perfectly, just as Yennefer had intended.</p>
<p>"Try it on for me," Yennefer said before she could stop herself.</p>
<p>Tissaia looked at her then nodded and went upstairs. When Yennefer saw Tissaia go into her bedroom she stood up and opened the door to the balcony to get some fresh air. She paced up and down while keeping an eye on the stairs. A few minutes later, she saw Tissaia emerge from her bedroom. Yennefer stopped moving and had to lean against the doorframe. She stared at the woman walking down the stairs towards her and realized that her mouth was hanging open like a drooling schoolboy, but she couldn't help herself. She was beautiful.</p>
<p>The dress fitted Tissaia perfectly. Above the waist, the light-weight material hugged her skin and it had dozens of pleats stretching from the small sash around her hips up to her left shoulder. Her right shoulder was bare, and the flowing skirt of the dress had a slit that ran from the middle of Tissaia's right thigh to the floor. She was wearing blue heels that stopped the dress dragging on the floor by less than an inch and when Tissaia walked slowly down the stairs her dress caught the light and sparkled as if it were lined with diamonds.</p>
<p>"How do I look?" Tissaia asked, holding out her skirt.</p>
<p>"Stunning," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She stepped forwards and offered Tissaia her hand, helping her down the last few stairs. Tissaia stood in front of the window and turned around on the spot so that Yennefer could admire her from all angles. And the dress too.</p>
<p>"When you told me that I had what it takes to get my designs on a model one day," said Yennefer," I didn't believe you. But here we are." She gestured towards Tissaia. "You look beautiful."</p>
<p>"Thank you," said Tissaia, "but it's your design that deserves the praise. It's wonderful."</p>
<p>Tissaia spun around again and looked at herself in the window.</p>
<p>"Better than anything I could ever have imagined," Yennefer said, staring at Tissaia's reflection.</p>
<p>When Yennefer had finished admiring her model she agreed to try on of the designs. The purples dress was slightly too long, having been designed with Philippa's measurements, but the skirt and the black to white dress fitted her well. Tissaia didn't change out of her dress while Yennefer preformed the private fashion show for her and even put on some jewellery to compliment the look. Yennefer held her breath while she pulled the necklace around Tissaia's neck and fumbled with the clasp because Tissaia's perfume was making her feel light-headed. Tissaia then gave her a necklace to try on which went perfectly with the black and white dress but Yennefer firmly refused to accept it as a gift. It looked expensive enough to feed her alcoholism for two months, and she couldn't begin to imagine how much it had cost Tissaia to get her designs made. She didn't want to get too indebted. She only had one soul to give and she was saving that for the devil.</p>
<p>When they had finished dressing up the hour was late, and Yennefer bid Tissaia farewell and wished her a happy Christmas. She would be returning to her family home for the holidays which meant that Yennefer probably wouldn't see her for a week or two. With the box carefully tucked under her arm, Yennefer stepped out into the cold December evening. She took a right and headed to The Lioness and banged furiously on the locked door.</p>
<p>"I'm coming," Calanthe screamed from the other side.</p>
<p>She opened the door and Yennefer slipped past her and went inside. She slammed the box onto a nearby table and slumped into one of the chairs, leaning her elbows on the table and holding her head in her hands.</p>
<p>"What's the matter with you?" Calanthe asked.</p>
<p>It had taken her a while to realize what it was because she'd never had it before. But now, she was sure. She loved Tissaia, and that's why she couldn't keep her out of her mind.</p>
<p>Yennefer sighed. "I'm fucked," she said.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>When I was daydreaming about this fic, the dress scene was probably the idea that convinced me I needed to write this story. Oh, I hoped you liked it!</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Exam Season</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A man wearing a sleeveless blue hoodie – because apparently those were a thing – and a baseball cap unlocked the front door and Yennefer slipped in behind him. She kept her head down and walked past the curly-haired receptionist with blue eye shadow manning the desk using Sporty as a shield. Of all the days Curly had to work, today just had to be one of them. After the incident with Istredd the lady – Yennefer thought her name might have been Karen but she hadn't been listening because she was too busy watching the repainted welcome sign on the wall behind her dry – had made a point of stopping and interrogating Yennefer whenever she came into the building. Tissaia had told the receptionist to stop calling her to check that Yennefer had been invited up but she hadn't listened. Yennefer wondered if her pay was being supplemented in any way by Mr and Mrs Lawrence but thought it best not to imply to Tissaia that her parents were interfering without proof.</p><p>Considering that her visit today wasn't exactly scheduled, Yennefer had donned her best disguise – if changing your hairstyle and wearing glasses worked for superheroes then it could work for her – and waited for a suitably beefy resident to help unknowingly smuggle her inside. When her accomplice took a left towards the gym Yennefer ran to the stairwell and flung herself around the corner. Yennefer took the steps two at a time and knocked on Tissaia's door.</p><p>It was the first week of January and Yennefer hadn't seen Tissaia since she'd realized how screwed she was, and they hadn't spoken much either. She knew that Tissaia had come back to her flat the day after New Years and she had asked her out twice that week but had been declined both times. Tissaia had said that she was too busy with her exams to see her and she had promised to catch up with her when they were over. But that wasn't good enough for Yennefer. She missed Tissaia and she was also worried about her. Tissaia had sounded stressed over the phone when Yennefer had called her a few days ago and the call had been an exchange of pleasantries rather than a conversation. Yennefer was just a concerned friend checking in on Tissaia, that was all. And her persistence had nothing to do with her own needs.</p><p>When no one answered, Yennefer knocked on the door again. Maybe Tissaia had gone out? Yennefer knocked on the door a third time for good measures and heard someone turn the lock. Tissaia appeared through the crack in the door and Yennefer knew that she had made the right call about coming. There were bags under her eyes and her white top was asymmetrical and hanging off one of her shoulders. Her hair had fallen out of its bun and loose strands were framing her face. But that wasn't the most surprising thing about her appearance.</p><p>"You're blonde," Yennefer said when she saw Tissaia's light roots.</p><p>Tissaia frowned and crossed her arms. "What do you want, Yennefer?" she asked. "I'm busy."</p><p>"I came to check on you."</p><p>"I'm fine," said Tissaia. "I just have a lot to do. You should go."</p><p>Yennefer put her foot up against the door. "No," she said.</p><p>Tissaia scowled at her. "I don't have time for this."</p><p>She pushed against the door and Yennefer pushed back.</p><p>"I'll make it quick," said Yennefer.</p><p>She took her foot off the door and slipped inside Tissaia's flat. The door slammed shut behind her.</p><p>"I swear I will get a latch for this thing," Tissaia said irritably.</p><p>Yennefer walked over to the sofa, sat down and looked around the flat. "This place is a mess," she said.</p><p>"Hardly," said Tissaia. "Don't exaggerate."</p><p>While it was true that the flat still looked exceptionally clean and tidy, things weren't where they were supposed to be. Yennefer had watched Tissaia tidy up after their Christmas meal and she had seen the way she put things back in very particular places. Looking around, she saw that the two kitchen towels were not folded exactly, the spices in the spice rack weren't all showing their labels, and the chairs at the dining table were not properly aligned. In other words, Tissaia's flat was less than perfect, and Tissaia always tried to keep things perfect.</p><p>"You look pretty dreadful too," said Yennefer. "When was the last time you slept?"</p><p>"None of your business," said Tissaia. "Get out."</p><p>"The sooner you answer me the sooner I'll get out of your blonde and slightly ruffled hair. Why haven't you redyed it?"</p><p>"You're impossible," Tissaia said through gritted teeth. "First you barge into my flat and then you interrogate me. I can't handle this right now."</p><p>Tissaia stormed past the back of the sofa and Yennefer jumped to her feet and cut her off at the stairs.</p><p>"What's wrong?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"Nothing is wrong," said Tissaia. "I said I'm fine. What part of that don't you understand?"</p><p>"I don't believe you."</p><p>"Well, you're going to have to take my word for it because I don't have the time to convince you. Move out of my way."</p><p>"No."</p><p>Tissaia pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled slowly. "I asked you to go," she said. "Why won't you leave me alone?"</p><p>"Because you didn't leave me," said Yennefer. "When you saw that I needed help with Istredd you argued with me until I gave in. Two can play at that game."</p><p>Tissaia's expression softened. "I appreciate what you're trying to do for me," she said, "but I'm fine."</p><p>"Have you seen yourself lately? Your roots are showing and you haven't put anything back properly. Tell me what's wrong."</p><p>Yennefer reached out and held Tissaia's elbow. The other woman paused for a moment before she uncrossed her arms and rubbed the back of her neck.</p><p>"There's nothing wrong, per se," said Tissaia. "I've just been too busy studying to clean the flat thoroughly or to go to the hairdressers."</p><p>"And when was the last time you slept properly?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"Last year."</p><p>"Have you been eating well?"</p><p>"No, I've been snacking mostly."</p><p>Yennefer thought that Tissaia did seem a little paler and skinnier than the last time she'd seen her. If she hadn't been eating or sleeping properly then she probably hadn't been getting any sun or exercise either.</p><p>"So, you're admitting that you haven't been looking after yourself?" said Yennefer.</p><p>Tissaia sighed. "I suppose I am."</p><p>"Then I guess I'm going to have to look after you myself."</p><p>Yennefer stepped to the side and walked into the kitchen.</p><p>"What are you doing?" Tissaia asked.</p><p>"I'm going to make you something to eat," said Yennefer.</p><p>She opened the fridge and saw that, besides a small carton of milk, a block of cheese, a tub of butter and some eggs, it was as barren as her back account. The same was true of the freezer and most of the cupboards she opened and the state of Tissaia's food stores, alongside the mountain of pods beside her coffee machine, were enough to tell Yennefer that she had probably been living on caffeine since New Years.</p><p>"You don't need to do that," Tissaia said, standing on the other side kitchen island. "I'm perfectly capable of feeding myself, and I'm sure that you have plenty of better things to be doing than serving me."</p><p>"Perhaps, but I am indebted to you," said Yennefer. "Remember?"</p><p>Tissaia shook her head and smiled. "There isn't anything I can do to convince you to leave, is there?"</p><p>"Nope. You can always trust me to look out for myself."</p><p>"So, you admit that you're only helping me to benefit yourself?"</p><p>"I do," said Yennefer. "I have to look after my saviour in case I need her again."</p><p>Tissaia disappeared upstairs to study and left Yennefer to pilfer her cupboards. She managed to scrape together two cheesy omelettes served with a side of canned tomatoes and helped herself to some quality coffee while she waited for Tissaia to come down. Half-way into her mug Yennefer set the steaming drink on the counter and went upstairs. Tissaia was in her room sitting with a laptop at her desk, which was covered in its entirety with pieces of paper and open books that under normal circumstances Yennefer would have taken as a sign of intrusion.</p><p>"Did you see my text?" Yennefer asked. "I've made lunch."</p><p>"Yes," Tissaia said without turning around. "I'll come down in a minute."</p><p>Yennefer waited in the doorway and counted to sixty in her head. When she finished, Tissaia didn't show any signs of being ready, and Yennefer wasn't sure she even realized that she was still there.</p><p>"Minutes over," Yennefer said, and stepped into the room.</p><p>She lowered the screen of Tissaia's laptop and grabbed her hand, pulling her out of her chair and taking her downstairs. Tissaia tried to protest but Yennefer was equally stubborn and Tissaia was forced to give in to her demands and her grumbling stomach. Yennefer asked Tissaia questions about her Christmas and New Years to stop her from guzzling down her food and running back to her laptop and warned her that they would be going out at five. Tissaia went back to her room and Yennefer cleaned up by herself. It was a little past two in the afternoon and she sat down and used Tissaia's Netflix account to pass the time. She could have left to pick up her sketchbook, but she wasn't sure Tissaia would let her back in.</p><p>When the time came for them to go, Tissaia didn't waste her energy putting up a fight. They went for a short walk around the park and stopped off at the supermarket on the way back. Yennefer used Tissaia's cookbook to make satay sweet potato curry for dinner and gave her another hour to study before dragging her onto the sofa at eight. They watched The Sound of Music, a classic that Yennefer couldn't believe she'd never seen before, and during the final number Yennefer realized that Tissaia had fallen asleep on her shoulder. Yennefer let the credits play while she eased Tissaia onto her side and lay a blanket over her. She looked exhausted, and Yennefer decided to stay the night to make sure she got some proper sleep, and not because she didn't want to leave her. She got another blanket and settled down on the sofa facing Tissaia, watching her sleep until she couldn't stay awake any longer.</p>
<hr/><p>An alarm on Tissaia's phone that made her think that the continent's missile warning system had been tripped woke Yennefer at six in the morning. She kicked off the blanket and fell off the sofa when she rolled over and forgot that there was nothing there. She pulled herself up with the edge of the coffee table and fumbled with Tissaia phone before putting the country back at peace with a tap of her finger. Yennefer rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and looked at Tissaia and found her staring back. She blinked a few times, mumbled under her breath and then closed her eyes. Yennefer's back started to ache from her potion bent over the coffee table with her legs against the floor but she didn't dare move until she was certain that Tissaia had fallen back to sleep. She needed it.</p><p>When the danger had passed Yennefer got up and pulled the blanket over Tissaia's shoulders. She stroked her hair, marvelling at how soft it felt in her fingers, and considered snapping a picture. Tissaia's hair was in a state and she looked like she'd been involved in a science accident or an experiment to do with static. Wisps of hair stuck out about her head and her bun had become loose. It would make for a fun and cute picture, but Yennefer valued her relationship with Tissaia too much to let a photograph and her obsession with her hair get between them. She let Tissaia be and lay back down on her sofa.</p><p>Yennefer woke up again, of her own accord and not from a near heart-attack, two hours later. Tissaia still looked dead to the living world and there was a smile about her face that made Yennefer reconsider her previous stance on early morning photoshoots. To resist the temptation she got up and went into the kitchen and busied herself with breakfast. If she was at home a packaged pancake or half-finished ready-meal would have done her just fine, but Yennefer didn't want to feed Tissaia any of the crap that she ate. She cared about her health and everyone knew that bad breakfast foods were a gateway junk food.</p><p>When she couldn't find anything interesting to try in Tissaia's cookbook that was plausible, Pain Au Raisins and Fruit and Cream Cheese Breakfast Pastries were far beyond her skill level and she wanted to wake Tissaia up with the smell of good food and not an oven fire, she put the book down on the side and took out her phone. While she was looking for something Tissaia rose from the dead and upon realizing what time it was she berated Yennefer for letting her sleep through her alarm, Yennefer pleaded innocent but Tissaia didn't believe her, and stormed upstairs to take a shower. Yennefer wasn't quite sure whether she had been forgiven when a freshly laundered and smooth-haired Tissaia came downstairs, but her fluffy pancakes seemed to put her back in Tissaia's good books. They enjoyed breakfast together and Yennefer left Tissaia's flat after they arranged to go for a walk again in the afternoon.</p><p>Over the following two weeks, they fell into a comfortable pattern. Yennefer would come over and cook Tissaia lunch and then she would sketch for a few hours while Tissaia studied and in the early evening, they would go for a walk. Some nights Yennefer would stay for dinner and they would watch a film and one evening Tissaia let Yennefer redye her hair. On the days when Tissaia had an exam, Yennefer would get up early and stay at Tissaia's house for most of the day. It was difficult getting used to rising before the afternoon, but her changing schedule and habits were doing her good. Calanthe had mentioned one shift that she seemed more energetic and perky than usual. When she was around Tissaia, Yennefer didn't drink as much as she normally would, and she had been eating better and exercising more. It was kind of ironic. She had been trying to look after Tissaia and in doing so she had been also been looking after herself.</p><p>After Tissaia finished her last January exam they went out to eat and revisited the arcade, and the following day they went to an aquarium. Yennefer had never been to one before and Tissaia wanted to take her as a thank you. They spent most of the day there because, as Yennefer quickly learned, Tissaia liked to read every single plaque and information card that was available to her as though her very existence might depend on what she knew about a Zebra Turkeyfish – and no that's not made up. It was something that Istredd had done when they'd gone to an art exhibit together and it had driven her impatient arse crazy. But with Tissaia, it was different. Yennefer didn't mind letting her read what she wanted and she enjoyed listening to Tissaia when she read out an interesting or unusual passage to her. She wasn't in a rush to get things over and done with, and happily watched the fish while she waited for Tissaia to finish. Sometimes she would glance at Tissaia while she read, following her finger as it trailed down the information card, or watching the shadow of the water rippling across her face.</p><p>At the end of the day, Yennefer brought a tacky key ring at the gift shop and went back to Tissaia's. They had dinner together, a chicken lasagne that Tissaia made, and then Yennefer had to head home to get ready for work. Calanthe grilled her about her so called date the moment she walked through the door and unbeknown to her – but probably not Calanthe because she had no respect for secrets - Philippa overheard their conversation.</p><p>"You repeat a word of this to Tissaia," Yennefer said, leaning over the counter and threatening Philippa with her mixer, "I'll skin you alive and feed you old Mrs Noris' cats."</p><p>"My lips are sealed," said Philippa.</p><p>She took a sip of her drink and Yennefer watched her for a while, trying to gauge whether she could trust her and then realizing that as a general rule Philippa was never to be trusted. But, there wasn't anything else she could do to persuade her and she turned her back on the problem, hoping that it might finish its drink and leave. She had no such luck.</p><p>"But," said Philippa, "I will say that I told you so."</p><p>"Told me what?" said Yennefer.</p><p>"That you were gay for her."</p><p>"I said it first," said Calanthe.</p><p>Yennefer picked up the towel that was hanging off one of the cupboards and used it to swat at Calanthe. "Will you to pack it in," she said, "someone might hear you."</p><p>"Don't you want the world to know how much you love her?" said Philippa.</p><p>No fucking way, Yennefer thought. She had no idea how Tissaia saw her or how she would react if she told her how she felt. Hell, she didn't even know if Tissaia was into women. Telling her that she was interested in moving out of the friendzone could be a sure-fire way to get stuck there forever or worse. Get pushed back to acquaintances. Yennefer had placed some bad bets before. Tissaia would not become one of them. Best to play it safe.</p><p>Philippa lifted her glass off the bar and leant back in her chair when Yennefer tried to slap her with the towel.</p><p>"I'm warning you, Phil," said Yennefer.</p><p>"Threats won't get you anywhere, dear," said Philippa. "But if you were to do me a favour-"</p><p>"You must be out of your mind."</p><p>"Trust me, Yenna, it will benefit you too."</p><p>Yennefer sighed. She was going to regret this, but desperate time called for blah blah blah. "What do you want?" she asked.</p><p>"Get Tissaia to come to the bar crawl tomorrow," said Philippa.</p><p>It was a tradition that Philippa celebrated the end of an exam period by going on a tour of the local drinking establishments with a large band of misfits and friends. Yennefer had agreed to join her weeks ago and had been forced to turn down a night in with Tissaia to attend because she didn't want to raise suspicion. If she could get Tissaia to go, then she could spend the night with her without people wondering why she'd turned down an opportunity to get wasted.</p><p>"Is that it?" said Yennefer.</p><p>"Don't scoff," said Philippa. "You might find the task more challenging than you think. Do we have a deal?"</p><p>She offered out her hand and Yennefer shook it.</p><p>"Go and ask her now," said Calanthe.</p><p>Yennefer went into Calanthe's office to phone Tissaia. She picked at the loose thread on the armrest and snapped a piece off when she asked her about the bar crawl. Tissaia seemed reluctant to accept her invitation and Yennefer was forced to resort to slightly underhanded but completely harmless tactics. She told Tissaia that she had promised Philippa she would go because she hadn't seen her or Sabrina lately and that she didn't really know anyone else who was going. She begged Tissaia not to leave her alone with her sisters all night and said that maybe they could sneak off after a few bars. Her plan worked and Tissaia agreed to go with her and they made plans to have dinner together beforehand.</p><p>When Yennefer put her phone down and went back to the bar, she was feeling very pleased with herself.</p><p>"Is it done?" Philippa asked.</p><p>"Yes," said Yennefer. "Make sure you keep up your end of the bargain."</p><p>"I will." Philippa finished the last of her vodka and lemonade and passed the glass to Yennefer. "I'll see you here tomorrow, at eight o'clock sharp. Don't be late."</p><p>Philippa got up and left and someone came over to the bar to order a drink, but Yennefer didn't catch what they said. She was too preoccupied thinking about how she was going to persuade Calanthe to keep her big mouth shut as well.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>There, have some more fluff. Also who else loves the image of Yennefer watching Tissaia looking at and read about the fishies</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Wednesday Xx</p><p>PS: sorry for not having replied to any of the last update's comments. I've been busy packing, moving, unpacking and preparing for an interview. I should get round to it tomorrow :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Sex on the Beach</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer collected her two cocktails from the bar and went to find Tissaia. This was their third venue and round of drinks for the night and Yennefer was starting to feel the difference. She would probably have to pass up a drink at the next bar to stop herself from getting too inebriated. Her self-control was limited at the best of times and she was worried that if she drank too much she might not be able to restrain herself around Tissaia.</p><p>At two drinks in Yennefer had already caught herself staring at Tissaia's lips three times and she kept gravitating into her personal bubble when there was plenty of space around them for her to use instead. If Tissaia had noticed either of these transgressions then she had spared her the task of explaining herself, but Yennefer had come up with a few possible escape strategies in case she was called to the stand later that evening. It might have been that Tissaia had noticed but didn't mind because there had been a few times that night when she had purposefully moved or leant towards her. It seemed that Tissaia had gotten used to brushing shoulders with her and that she favoured being close to her rather than moderately spaced between her and a stranger. Yennefer tried not to look too pleased with herself whenever Tissaia slipped into her personal space to back away from someone else and tried and failed not to think of the implications. It just meant that Tissaia had gotten used to being touched by her and that was all.</p><p>Yennefer found Tissaia on the other side of the bar standing next to the booth that Philippa and a few of her friends had staked claim to with empty shoulder bags and inexpensive jackets that nobody would shed a tear for if they were lost when they'd arrived. She was talking with a young man that kept shuffling forwards to reclaim ground whenever Tissaia retreated. It was Vilgefotz, the student that had tried to stop her from apologizing to Tissaia outside the law building last month. He was smiling charmingly at Tissaia and Yennefer could see his hard-on for her on the other side of the room. Prick, she thought. Couldn't he tell that Tissaia wasn't interested in a wannabe Abercrombie and Fitch model who liked to pretend he'd forgotten to take out the price tag so that he could ask you to cut it off for him and read how much it was worth? Yennefer swallowed her anger with a mouthful of Absolutely Cherry and went over to them with a smile plastered on her face.</p><p>"Is this man bothering you, Tissaia?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"No more than the man before him," said Tissaia. She took her drink from Yennefer and inclined her head to the booth. "Would you like to sit down?"</p><p>Yennefer nodded and gestured for Tissaia to go first. Vilgefortz scowled at her behind Tissaia's back and Yennefer gave him a death stare that would hopefully communicate her wish for him to fuck off and leave Tissaia alone. It appeared to work, Yennefer had learnt from the best, the best being Miss Eilhart, because when she slid in next to Tissaia, Vilgefortz decided to go and talk to some of the others rather than sit next to Yennefer.</p><p>"Thank you for your timely intervention," Tissaia said when he was out of earshot.</p><p>"My pleasure," said Yennefer. "But why not tell him to piss off yourself? You're hardly shy with your words."</p><p>"Because his parents work with my father."</p><p>"You mean you have to pretend to get along with him for the sake of the family business?"</p><p>"I do."</p><p>"That's crap," said Yennefer. She turned and sat sideways facing Tissaia. "You shouldn't have to put up with that creep flirting with you."</p><p>Tissaia tapped a ring against her glass. "And who said he was flirting with me?" she said.</p><p>"He's a man and you're the most attractive woman in this bar by leagues. He was flirting with you."</p><p>Yennefer couldn't be sure because the lights in the bar were dismally bleak, trust Philippa to take them someplace shady, but she thought she saw Tissaia blush.</p><p>"I don't know about that," said Tissaia. "If it were true then you'd hardly be able to move for all the men fawning over you."</p><p>"Did you just call me pretty?" Yennefer said, holding her hand under her chin and fluttering her eyelashes. "It sounded like you think I'm pretty."</p><p>Tissaia rolled her eyes and smiled. "Maybe I did. Don't let it go to your head."</p><p>Yennefer took a long sip of her drink to hide the flush that she felt rising in her cheeks. When the heat died down she sat in her seat properly and draped her arm over the back of the bench.</p><p>"Would you have to date him if your parents asked you to?" said Yennefer.</p><p>"Yennefer, I'm not a princess," said Tissaia. "My parents aren't going to marry me off."</p><p>"Just checking, because I'm free next Wednesday if you need me to chase off any more suitors."</p><p>"I'll remember that."</p><p>Philippa, Sabrina, and a few of their friends joined them at the booth. They packed themselves onto the long chairs on either side of the table and Yennefer wrapped her hands around her drink to stop them from wandering where they shouldn't. She was pressed up between Philippa and Tissaia and could feel almost every movement that they made. It was unbearable being so close to Tissaia, and her skin tingled whenever she moved against her. Yennefer dabbed her forehead with the back of her hand and downed the remainder of her cocktail to try and cool herself down. It didn't work and she had to excuse herself to go to the bathroom before she became feverish. She ran her hands under the cold tap and then went outside into the smoking area, leaning against the wall behind a group of young women who were sharing a cigarette.</p><p>Yennefer hadn't expected tonight to be this difficult. If she had just wanted to touch Tissaia, to kiss her, then things might have been alright. Lust was a problem she could have easily solved with three fingers and the light BDSM section on Pornhub. Love, however, her cruel mistress, wasn't that simple to please. It was a craving that only one person could scratch, but Tissaia was holding back the fix that she hungered for, and Yennefer was too afraid to beg. Tissaia made her feel good inside in ways she'd never experienced or thought possible, and when she came down she was left needing more and wanting to go further than they'd gone before. The highs that Tissaia gave her had stopped hitting the mark since Christmas, but if she asked for more then Tissaia might stop giving her anything at all. Until tonight, Yennefer had thought that she could bear that needed, but now she thought that she might have to give it up altogether. Wanting what she couldn't have had never been this difficult. Maybe she should call it a night before things got more out of hand.</p><p>"Are you okay?"</p><p>Yennefer jerked her head sideways and saw Tissaia standing next to her and looking at her with concern.</p><p>"I'm fine," Yennefer lied. "Just felt a little woozy."</p><p>"I'll get you some water," said Tissaia.</p><p>She disappeared inside and Yennefer sat down at an old and rickety wooden picnic table that smelt like it had absorbed the souls of a hundred sweaty and beer-soaked men poorly aged over sixty years. Tissaia returned with her promised beverage and Yennefer choked on it when she accidentally breathed in while trying to take a drink because her brain had decided to shut down when she'd seen the adorable way Tissaia wrinkled her nose at the state of the table before sitting down next to her. She coughed and spit some of the water onto her hand when she covered her mouth. Tissaia tried to help by patting her on the small of the back and Yennefer was glad that it was dark outside because between Tissaia and the choking, no innuendo intended, she was probably going red in the face. Yennefer wiped the back of her hand on her trousers and when she could breathe again without threatening to drown herself, she took a small sip of water to try and soothe her throat and her wounded pride.</p><p>"How are you finding the bar crawl?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"I'm enjoying myself," said Tissaia. "I'm glad you pressured me into coming."</p><p>"Guilty as sin. What gave me away?"</p><p>"Subtlety isn't your strong suit."</p><p>Unless I'm trying to hide how I feel about you, Yennefer thought. Then again, Calanthe and Philippa had noticed what was happening before she had, so perhaps she wasn't as subtle about her attraction as she'd thought.</p><p>"If someone had told me two months ago that I'd be going on a bar crawl with Philippa Eilhart and her cronies," said Tissaia, "I would have thought they'd mistaken me for someone else."</p><p>"What changed?" Yennefer asked.</p><p>"I met someone."</p><p>"Sounds like a whirlwind romance."</p><p>Tissaia smiled and Yennefer almost choked again. She decided to put the water down, just to be on the safe side.</p><p>"Whirlwind sounds about right," said Tissaia. "But I think I needed a little chaos in my life. It helped push me to try new things."</p><p>"And here you are," said Yennefer.</p><p>"Here I am indeed."</p><p>Yennefer wiped the condensation off her glass with her thumb. "You should be careful," she said, "whirlwinds can be dangerous and unpredictable. You could get hurt. Are you sure it's worth it?"</p><p>Tissaia's playful smile gave way to a serious but kind expression and she reached forward to tuck Yennefer's hair behind her ear. "It has been so far," she said.</p><p>Yennefer titled her head into Tissaia's touch as her hand lingered in her hair and lightly touched her face. She could see a few silver specks in Tissaia's blue eyes and tasted sex on the beach on her breath. She wondered if she would taste it on her lips if they kissed. Yennefer reached up and held Tissaia's arms just above the elbow and leant forwards.</p><p>God only knows whether she would have gone through with it, except someone sat down opposite them at the table and Yennefer disengaged from Tissaia so fast that she worried she might have given her friction burn. Yennefer sat up and saw who had interrupted them. And realized that she'd been caught red-handed by none other than her least favourite and most-punchable care sister.</p><p>"Oh don't mind me," Philippa said, waving her hand. "I'm just here to watch the show."</p><p>"Fuck off," said Yennefer.</p><p>"With charm like that, it's no wonder you struggle with the ladies." Philippa looked away from Yennefer's stare and turned her attention to Tissaia instead. "I thought you might like to know that we're moving on in a few minutes. And tell your girlfriend here to back down before someone gets hurt. I know she bites."</p><p>"Then perhaps it would be wise of you to stop provoking her," said Tissaia.</p><p>Besides the clenched set of her jaw, Tissaia's expression had remained mostly neutral and disinterested. That was good, Yennefer told herself. As long as Tissaia thought that Philippa was trying to get a rise out of her she wouldn't believe what her sister had to say. If she pretended not to care as well then Philippa couldn't give anything away.</p><p>Philippa pretended to look horrified at the accusation. "Provoke her? Me?" she said. "Never."</p><p>"You've said what you came here to say," said Tissaia. "Go back inside before the others leave you behind."</p><p>"Have it your way," said Philippa. She stood up and stepped over the bench. "Should I tell Vilgefortz to wait for you, or not?"</p><p>"We both know you aren't going to tell him anything," said Tissaia.</p><p>"True enough," said Philippa. "I despise the man, and under normal circumstances, I would never have allowed him to tag along. But I thought that on this occasion his presence might provide some entertainment value." Philippa looked between them and appeared slightly disappointed when no one took the bait, not that it stopped her. "I had rather been hoping," she said, "that he would get into a fight with Yennefer over your affection, Tissaia."</p><p>Under the table, Yennefer clasped her hands around the edge of the bench on either side of her leg and wished that the wood would crack so she could smash Philippa's face in with a shattered plank. She wouldn't be able to bother them anymore if she was busy plucking splinters out of her face.</p><p>"Then I'm glad to see that we've disappointed you," said Tissaia.</p><p>"I don't know about that," said Philippa. "If I play my cards right then it might be Vilgefortz who walks in on you two the next time Yennefer tries to make her move."</p><p>Yennefer's half-empty glass rolled off the table and shattered by her feet when she stood up and slammed her palms against the table hard enough to made the wood under her palms crack open as though struck by an earthquake. She felt the water soak into her converses and the bottom of her ripped jeans and a shiver ran up her spine that did nothing to cool to the anger she felt boiling over in her chest. She should have known better than to trust Philippa to play fair, but even this was a new low for her. If she didn't keep her smug mouth shut, she could ruin everything. Why did she have to be such a fucking arsehole to her? Wasn't she supposed to have grown out of that by now?</p><p>Everyone in the smoking area was enjoying Philippa's carefully planned spectacle, and a few of Philippa's friends, including Sabrina, had come out to admire her cruel handiwork. Yennefer got up from the table and thought about punching her lights out just to wipe that infuriatingly pleased and shit-eating grin of Philippa's face, but Tissaia grabbed one of her arms and shook her head slightly. Her fingers were cool against her wrist and her grip firm yet gentle. Yennefer stayed where she was and straightened up, uncurling her fists and plunging them into her restricting trouser pockets. Tissaia was right. As satisfying as it would be to mark up Philippa's face with the back of her hand it would only make the situation worse. Besides, wasn't she supposed to be pretending she didn't care? Who was she kidding, that ship had sailed the moment she'd been conceived.</p><p>"There isn't anything for him to see," said Tissaia.</p><p>"Oh that's sweet," Philippa said in a baby-voice. "You really don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"</p><p>"Leave it, Phil," Yennefer warned, stepping up and jabbing a finger into her chest.</p><p>Philippa backed out of arms reach and put her hands on her hips. She turned to Tissaia, and Yennefer wished she'd punched her lights out when she'd had the chance.</p><p>"She fancies you, Tissaia," said Philippa. "And she's got it-"</p><p>Yennefer dived at Philippa and rugby-tackled her to the floor. She straddled her hips and tried to slap whatever part of her that she could reach. It wasn't a pretty sight. They fought like little kids in a whirlwind of arms and legs and giggling on Philippa's part which only made Yennefer angrier. She managed to land a few good blows in before she was pulled off the world's worst sister – scrap that, the world's worst human being in history – by two young men that Yennefer kicked in the shins to show her appreciation.</p><p>They let go and Yennefer peeled her eyes of Philippa's bloodied nose and looked for Tissaia. She was standing beside the cracked picnic table and looked visibly shocked. She met Yennefer's eye and she knew that the damage was done. Philippa had given her away. Yennefer turned on her heels and ran out the door. She could handle Tissaia's rejection in the morning.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I did warn you that the cliffhangers would get worse 😈</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Stranger Things</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer pushed her way out of the bar and onto the street. It was a cold and cloudy night lit by rusty streetlamps, dirty neon signs and forgotten Christmas decorations that were running out of holiday spirit. Yennefer shouldered through a group of young women that were standing in her way and kicked a beer bottle down the street then cursed when it bruised her toe. Limping slightly, Yennefer hurried down the street and towards an arcade that she could duck into to get off the main street. She approached a vintage music store with records hanging in the window on her left and veered towards it, almost knocking someone over in her haste.</p>
<p>She grabbed hold of them and quickly let go when Tissaia looked at her. Yennefer tried to step around her and into the Castle Quarter Arcade but Tissaia copied her movements to block her way. When she tried to step back and continue walking up the main street Tissaia grabbed her hand and pulled her back round.</p>
<p>"Yennefer, wait," she said. "We need to talk."</p>
<p>"What's the point," Yennefer said, pulling her arm free. "I already know what you're going to say."</p>
<p>"Unless you've recently developed telepathic abilities that I don't know about," said Tissaia, "I highly doubt that."</p>
<p>Yennefer crossed her arms over her chest. "What do you want?"</p>
<p>"I want-" Tissaia bit her bottom lip and tucked an invisible strand of hair behind her ear. Yennefer had never heard her sound uncertain before. "I want to know if Philippa was telling the truth."</p>
<p>Yennefer shrugged. "What does it matter?"</p>
<p>"It matters to me," said Tissaia. "Tell me… Please."</p>
<p>And with one word the spell was broken. Yennefer felt her resolve and her anger crumble into dust. She couldn't lie to her. Not about this. The damage had already been done, what did it matter if she made things worse?</p>
<p>"It's true," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Which part?" Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>"All of it."</p>
<p>"I-"</p>
<p>"You don't have to say anything," said Yennefer. She scuffed her shoes on the gum-ridden cobblestone and hooked her fingers in her pockets. "I know you don't feel the same way. That's why I didn't say anything."</p>
<p>"Yennefer," Tissaia said slowly, "if you'd just told me-"</p>
<p>"Then you might have run away," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"Why would you think that? You're-"</p>
<p>"Isn't it obvious?" Yennefer turned around and walked several paces into the street then looked back. "What could you possibly see in me? I'm a fucking train wreck, Tissaia. I drink too much, and I live off packaged food that will probably give me a heart attack before I'm thirty. I make bad decisions that get other people hurt and I'm fucking paranoid in so many bloody ways. I'm reckless and brash, and more trouble than I'm-"</p>
<p>Yennefer was too shocked to respond immediately, and she felt Tissaia pulling away before she regained enough of her senses to kiss her back. She had been right. Her lips tasted of cherry chapstick and fruity cocktails, and there was a hint of sex on the beach. Tissaia's arms were around her neck and Yennefer held her waist, gripping her sides tightly to tell herself that she wasn't dreaming. When they broke apart Yennefer noticed that Tissaia had been standing on her toes to reach her and she laughed, and Tissaia laughed with her.</p>
<p>"Will you shut up and let me finish," Tissaia said a moment later.</p>
<p>Yennefer nodded.</p>
<p>"If you had told me how you felt," said Tissaia, "I would have said that I felt the same."</p>
<p>"You do?" said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia smiled. "Why do you sound surprised? I don't kiss just anybody, you know."</p>
<p>"I didn't think someone like you could see me are more than a friend. I didn't even think you were gay."</p>
<p>"To be fair, right up till a few minutes ago, I don't think I knew it either."</p>
<p>"Where do we go from here?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>"You ask me another question," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer shook her head. "You're really making me work for this, aren't you?"</p>
<p>"Of course."</p>
<p>"Fine. Would you like to go on a date with me?"</p>
<p>"It would be my pleasure."</p>
<p>"Are you sure?" said Yennefer. "I could list all the reasons why this is a bad idea, if you'd like?"</p>
<p>Tissaia lowered her hands to Yennefer's shoulders and caressed her face. "The Yennefer you described isn't anything like the one I know," she said.</p>
<p>"I'm different when I'm with you."</p>
<p>"Then that's all the more reason to give this a try."</p>
<p>Yennefer nodded. She knew it sounded cliché as heck, and far be it for her to be accused of sounding like the love interest from the latest young adult top seller, but she had to admit it. Tissaia made her a better person, and she wasn't the only one who knew it. Yennefer sighed.</p>
<p>"I can't believe that Philippa was right," she said.</p>
<p>Tissaia drew her eyebrows together and pressed the back of her hand against Yennefer's forehead. "Are you feeling alright? You just said the strangest thing."</p>
<p>"After I showed you my designs," said Yennefer, "she told me that we would be good for each other."</p>
<p>"I think we are."</p>
<p>Yennefer gaped at her. "Am I dreaming, or did you just agree with something Philippa Eilhart said."</p>
<p>"Now I want to take it back," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Too late, but I promise not to tell for a kiss," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She lowered her head and Tissaia wrapped her hands back behind her neck.</p>
<p>"You have yourself a deal, Miss Vengerberg."</p>
<p>They kissed to a round of applause and cheers from down the street, and Yennefer put her middle finger up to their would-be-audience. She didn't need to look. Philippa's taunts were unmistakable and colourfully unique.</p>
<p>"Let's take this somewhere else," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Hand in hand they walked into the arcade and through the side streets that Yennefer had tried to escape down until they were both satisfied that they had lost the hounds. They kissed a few more times outside a thrift shop for grannies and then Tissaia started to adjust her clothes.</p>
<p>"People are usually nervous before their first kiss," said Yennefer, "not after it."</p>
<p>Tissaia's arms went lax around her neck. "Was it that obvious?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Was what that obvious?"</p>
<p>"That I've not done this before?"</p>
<p>"That's not what I meant. I just find it hard to believe that you're the same person who came onto me in the middle of the street just a moment ago."</p>
<p>"Liquid courage," said Tissaia. "Sweet, but short-lived."</p>
<p>"Relax," said Yennefer. "You're doing fine."</p>
<p>"I know I'm overthinking things, but I can't help it."</p>
<p>"Don't worry about it," Yennefer said, squeezing her hips lightly. "We don't have to do this now. I'll walk you home."</p>
<p>"I'm fine," said Tissaia. "Maybe we could go back to The Lioness? I presume Calanthe knows."</p>
<p>"She guessed as much, but the only place I'm taking you is back to your flat. You're tired, and don't try to deny it. Did you think I wouldn't notice you yawning into my chest?"</p>
<p>"Stranger things have happened tonight."</p>
<p>"True," said Yennefer. She took Tissaia's hands in hers and stepped backwards. "If you come without a fight we can stop for something to eat."</p>
<p>Tissaia tugged on her hand and Yennefer had to take a step forward. "And if I don't?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Then I'll set the hounds back on our scent."</p>
<p>There was a pause.</p>
<p>"You wouldn't," said Tissaia.</p>
<p>"Try me," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"My, aren't you a stubborn thing."</p>
<p>"You know what they said. Fight fire with fire-"</p>
<p>"And risk getting burnt," Tissaia said, folding her arms.</p>
<p>"Perhaps," said Yennefer. "Are you coming, or do I need to ring text Phil?"</p>
<p>"I'll come, if only to spare myself the sight of her smug face."</p>
<p>They re-joined the main street and were pleased to find them Philippa and Sabrina free; the alcohol must have called them away. Yennefer marvelled at the feeling of Tissaia's hand in hers. It was small and dainty, and if this were some fantasy or medieval drama somebody probably would have called it a noble's hand because it showed no signs of wear, unlike her hand which were still a little rough to the touch from the work she had done on the farm as a child. When she had been with Istredd holding hands had felt like a joyless chore or task that had to be done because it was a requirement of her position as his girlfriend. But this was different. She enjoyed holding Tissaia's hand and they walked together rather than her being led.</p>
<p>When they were passing the last few drinking establishments on the street Yennefer noticed that Tissaia was rubbing her arms and that they were covered in goosebumps.</p>
<p>"I left it at The Chameleon," Tissaia said when Yennefer asked where her jacket was. "I was in a rush."</p>
<p>"Take mine," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She started unzipping her green jacket but Tissaia stopped her.</p>
<p>"I've already stolen one thing from you," she said. "I should probably stop there or I might not be able to help myself in the future."</p>
<p>"I forgot about that," said Yennefer. She had given Tissaia her white zip-up hoodie at the hospital and she hadn't gotten it back. That was months ago, and she couldn't imagine that Tissaia had forgotten. "Were you ever planning on giving that back?"</p>
<p>"I was, but I've changed my mind."</p>
<p>"Going to wear it when you miss me?"</p>
<p>"What makes you think I'd miss you?" said Tissaia. She pulled on the collar of Yennefer's jacket and made her bend over. "I'm not letting you go anywhere, Yennefer… Yen."</p>
<p>"Yen," Yennefer whispered, savouring the word in her mouth like good wine. "Nobody's ever called me that. Say it again."</p>
<p>"Yen."</p>
<p>"Tissaia."</p>
<p>Yennefer had never liked being affectionate in public and had always scoffed at young couples sucking each other's faces off where she could see them. But tonight (or was it tomorrow now?) she was guilty of gross acts of public indecency and sinned on more than one occasion. Eventually, they made it inside a Burger King, an essential part of a bar crawl and the only acceptable non-alcoholic stop (unless you had a hip flask given to you from by your alcoholic boss that was hidden in your trousers), and ordered. Tissaia, unsurprisingly, hadn't eaten at one before and Yennefer decided to go easy on her stomach and her blood pressure and got her Veggie Bean Burger while she, a fast-food connoisseur, had a cheeseburger with chilli cheese bites.</p>
<p>They eat in silence, Tissaia looked too confused about how to tackle her footlong burger to hold a conversation, and stayed inside for a few minutes to warm up. Yennefer found out that Tissaia had started to question how she felt about her after Christmas, when she'd been acting like the 'most stubborn and infuriating mother hen I've ever had the misfortune of being looked after by', to quote Tissaia. Much like her, Tissaia hadn't said anything because she didn't think her affection would be well received and she'd been too terrified to take the chance. Tissaia was a control freak and Yennefer could imagine how difficult it would be for her to lose control by admitting how she felt and waiting to see what the other person would do with that confession. It was still hard to believe that Tissaia had kissed her first. Thank god for alcohol, she thought, and for Philippa Eilhart.</p>
<p>"I'm not ready to take this any further tonight," Tissaia said when they reached her building, "but would you like to come inside?"</p>
<p>"Sure," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>They went up to her flat and after kicking off her heels Tissaia carried them upstairs and into her bedroom. Yennefer wandered around the living room because she didn't feel like sitting still and saw a new photo frame on a shelf under the stairs. It was made of glass that had been decorated with gold and silver fish. Tissaia had brought it at the aquarium gift shop and she had used it to frame the photo they'd had professionally taken there. Yennefer made a note to ask her for the photo later.</p>
<p>Tissaia came out a minute later in Yennefer's hoodie and they curled up on the sofa with a bottle of sparkling water. Yennefer watched in amusement as Tissaia devoured half a box of cherries (it was her favourite fruit and she was hungry, okay) and helped herself to some grapes from her enamelled fruit bowl. They were her favourite fruit for multiple reasons, most of which were listed in any good wine menu.</p>
<p>When they had both satisfied their sweet tooth, Yennefer attempted to undo Tissaia's hair, but the bun and pins were stubborn and unyielding, and she had to admit defeat. She'd have to learn how to tackle that obstacle another day. Tissaia took pity on her and undid it herself, and her hair fell in a slightly untamed mess around her reaching down to just cover her breasts. She looked so different this way and Yennefer ran her fingers through Tissaia's hair when she kissed her goodbye. Without the heels, the top of Tissaia's head reached Yennefer's chin (her boots had a slight heel) and they had to meet halfway.</p>
<p>"I'll pick you up tomorrow at half six," said Yennefer.</p>
<p>"What are we doing?" Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>"I can't tell you."</p>
<p>"Why? Because you don't know yet or because you're a sadist and love to torture me with surprises?"</p>
<p>"The latter. I like it when you get flustered."</p>
<p>"At least that makes one of us."</p>
<p>"I think you enjoy it when I push you."</p>
<p>Tissaia grabbed hold of Yennefer's jacket and did the zip up to the top. "You're deluded," she said.</p>
<p>"We'll see," said Yennefer. "Till tomorrow."</p>
<p>"Goodnight, Yen."</p>
<p>Yennefer kissed the top of Tissaia's head, which was at the perfect height for her, and headed downstairs. Rather than going home to her own, empty bed, Yennefer went back to The Chameleon and collected Tissaia's suede jacket. It was only fair that she had something of hers to hold onto. Then, she checked her phone and went to Queens, a gay bar. It was the last stop on the bar crawl.</p>
<p>"I fucking hate you," Yennefer said when she joined Philippa and Sabrina in the smoking area.</p>
<p>Philippa took a long drag of her cigarette and tapped the ash onto the floor. "I know, I've outdone myself this time," she said. "You're welcome."</p>
<p>"Go fuck yourself."</p>
<p>"I'd rather get someone here to do it."</p>
<p>"How's the nose?" Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>It was hard to tell in the shady outside lighting, which was bright enough to stop you from tripping over your feet without threatening to reveal too many details about the stranger you were making-out with against the wall, but she thought it looked a little swollen.</p>
<p>Philippa smiled. "Never Better," she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer was more than a little annoyed that she didn't seem to care. She'd meant to piss her off and get back at her when she'd assaulted her, not give her what she wanted. Why did Philippa always have to fuck with her head?</p>
<p>"Did you come here to drink with us, or are you running errands for your girlfriend?" Sabrina said, pointing to the jacket in Yennefer's arms.</p>
<p>"Does she have you house trained already?" said Philippa. "I'm impressed."</p>
<p>"No," said Yennefer. "I came here to warn Phil that if she ever tries to interfere like that again, I will kill her in her sleep with her straighteners."</p>
<p>"It's no wonder Phil is such a bitch if this is the thanks she gets for helping you get with Tissaia," said Sabrina.</p>
<p>"I won't be taking up philanthropy any time soon, that's for sure," said Philippa. She put out her cigarette on a wooden table, leaving a mark beside the ashtray.</p>
<p>"The only person you know how to help, is yourself," said Yennefer. "I was doing fine on my own. You should have kept your fat mouth shut."</p>
<p>"Don't lie to yourself," said Philippa. "If I hadn't interrupted, you would have kissed Tissaia, panicked, and tried to pass it off as a joke or blame it on the alcohol. I did you a favour telling her."</p>
<p>That pissed Yennefer off even more. When you realized twice in one night that not everything Philippa said was utter bullshit, you started to question whether the sky was really blue.</p>
<p>"You keep telling yourself that," said Yennefer. "I'm going home. I hope you two catch something nasty."</p>
<p>"Give Tissaia our best," said Philippa.</p>
<p>When she got to her flat Yennefer threw her clothes on top of her dresser, hung Tissaia's jacket in the wardrobe and saw to her personal needs under the covers before cleaning her teeth and face and climbing into her bed. She opened her laptop and purchased two tickets for tomorrow night and pulled up her online photo album which had finished syncing with her phone. On the bar crawl, she had taken a few pictures of and with Tissaia and she set one as her laptop background. Perhaps it was a little premature, but nobody had to know about her early couples' screensaver but her.</p>
<p>Yennefer turned off her laptop and slid it under the bed so she wouldn't stand on it in her morning haze. She didn't feel drunk or dizzy when she laid down and got comfortable under the black and white duvet, which was a novelty she'd never experienced when out with her sisters. Even without a nightcap she fell asleep quickly, and for the first night in a while, she didn't dream about Istredd or her father at all.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>They kissed! Who thought that Tissaia would be the one to do it?</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Wicked Jinx</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer pressed the number for Tissaia’s flat and waited. The door buzzed and unlocked, and she went up to the second floor and knocked on the door to the left of the stairs. It opened to reveal Tissaia in a fitting green dress with thick straps that was held together at the waist by a sash. One finely manicured hand clutched a purse hanging off her shoulder and she had a silver bird with green gemmed eyes on a chain around her neck. But none of that was important because what Yennefer noticed was that Tissaia had worn her hair down just for her.</p><p>“I believe I have something that belongs to you,” said Yennefer. She held up Tissaia’s suede jacket. “I thought about keeping it, but it doesn’t fit, and it looks too good on you to steal.”</p><p>“I’m sure we can find you something of mine to wear,” said Tissaia. She turned around and Yennefer helped her into her jacket. “I see you wore your skirt for me.”</p><p>Yennefer hadn’t yet had a chance to wear any of the clothes that Tissaia had someone at The Valley make for her. Tonight felt like the perfect opportunity to take them out of the box and she had paired the white skirt with a plain blacktop.</p><p>“Dress to impress,” said Yennefer.</p><p>“You could wear sweatpants and an oversized sweater,” said Tissaia, “and I would still be astonished by your beauty.”</p><p>Yennefer smiled and held Tissaia’s waist. “Do you plan to compliment me all night?”</p><p>“I plan to tell you what I think.”</p><p>They kissed then went downstairs to the taxi. Yennefer discreetly gave the driver an address and tried to distract Tissaia before she could get caught up worrying about where she was taking her.</p><p>“Calanthe sends her regards,” said Yennefer.</p><p>“After the text message I received from her last night, I had assumed you’d told her,” said Tissaia.</p><p>On her way home Yennefer had rung Calanthe to tell her about her date plans with Tissaia on Saturday. She could have stopped by at The Lioness to let her know in person, but after dealing with Philippa and Sabrina she hadn’t the strength to endure Calanthe’s long ‘I told you so’ charade. At least on the phone, she could cut it short with one press of a button.</p><p>“What message?” Yennefer asked.</p><p>Tissaia unlocked her phone and handed it over. At 01:23 Calanthe had sent her a message that consisted of a gif of Kermit the Frog flapping his arms about like the puppeteer was having a fit and a text that read ‘Go get her. Enjoy your first date’.</p><p>Yennefer gave Tissaia back her phone. “You got off lightly,” she said. “Calanthe warned me not to fuck this up.” And told her in no uncertain terms who’d she’d be answering to if she did.</p><p>“I think she might be a little too invested in our relationship,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“Maybe she and Philippa have a bet going.”</p><p>“I wouldn’t be surprised.”</p><p>They joined the traffic heading out of the city centre and turned onto the main road to the docks. The collection of high-rise buildings and chain stores thinned and they passed by rows of uniformed attached houses punctuated by the occasional takeaway place, charity shop, or shady pub.</p><p>“Have you told anyone about this?” Yennefer asked.</p><p>“No,” said Tissaia. “I’d prefer to keep my family uninformed for a while. I want to enjoy your company in privacy before you’re dragged into the spotlight with me at some family function or formal event. I hope you don’t mind.”</p><p>“I don’t,” said Yennefer.</p><p>Keeping Tissaia to herself was fine by her, and she didn’t fancy having their relationship picked apart by the Lawrences or their political and business rivals while they were working things out. Yennefer had never dated a woman and Tissaia had been single for twenty-three years. They needed time to themselves before getting high and mighty and judgemental society involved in their affairs. Calanthe was enough.</p><p>The taxi turned into a cark park and Yennefer paid the driver. They got out of the car and Yennefer took Tissaia’s hand and led her down the street. Seventy years ago, Gors Velen had made its fortune by exporting coal to other cities in the continent. When the coal industry declined the docks fell into disuse and the area surrounding it became largely abandoned and derelict. At the start of the twenty-first century, the old docklands had been redeveloped into Gors Velen Bay and rebranded as a trendy tourist spot bustling with restaurants, bars, theatres and water-based attractions. It had become a vibrant waterfront that honoured its ancestry with a small museum that was in a constant state of bankruptcy and disrepair.</p><p>They walked down a foodie and alcoholic high street and stopped outside a two-story building that was a few doors down from the sea. The word ‘JINX’ was spelt out in white, block capital letters down it’s front and Yennefer took them inside. They climbed the stairs to the second-floor balcony and Yennefer passed their tickets to an elderly gentleman in a black waistcoat. He nodded to the bouncer who checked their IDs and then passed the ticket back and ushered them through a pair of heavy fire doors.</p><p>The room was pleasantly warm and thankfully lacked the stuffy quality of a busy club or bar when packed with too many horny young men and women and not enough windows or air conditioning units. It was low-ceilinged and lit with warm red lights and a few white spotlights that were pointed at the stage on the right. The heavy ruby curtains were drawn closed and embellished with the same white letters on the outside of the building. There was a semicircle stage in front of the curtains that was roughly the same size as the karaoke stand in The Lioness, suggesting that this was a theatre for one. Chairs and tables were arched around the stage and there were some couches against the walls.</p><p>“What is this place?” Tissaia asked.</p><p>“I don’t want to ruin the surprise,” said Yennefer.</p><p>They went to the bar opposite the stage and got cocktails and ordered food to their table. Number fifteen was their spot and it situated them just off centre and a row back from the stage. Tissaia took off her jacket and draped it over the back of her chair and tried to snatch the two A6 page, black and white programme from Yennefer’s bag. She caught her hand and pulled Tissaia into her chair and asked her what she thought of the venue.</p><p>“It reminds me of a small jazz club that my grandfather used to take me to,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“You like jazz?” said Yennefer.</p><p>“Not particularly, but I know a lot about the genre because my grandfather was a bit of a jazz fanatic. He had hundreds of records and instruments and would go out of his way to see a good performance. His collection was worth thousands and we donated most of it when he passed, but I did keep his old guitar.”</p><p>“Was he any good?”</p><p>“He was a decent player, but his true talent lay in his voice. I used to love listening to him sing.” Tissaia smiled sadly. “I miss him.”</p><p>“Were you close?” Yennefer asked. She had never known her grandparents or any other family members besides her parents.</p><p>“Yes,” said Tissaia. “I used to spend much of my summer holidays with him and my grandmother. My parents were always far too busy for me. They had a wonderful summer house out by the coast. Perhaps we’ll go one day.”</p><p>“I’d like that.”</p><p>The food arrived and Yennefer tucked into her fried chicken while Tissaia enjoyed a spinach and feta pizza which she approached with a knife and fork. Half-way through their meal, the lights dimmed, and the audience hushed. A moment later a young woman in a yellow t-shirt with white polka dots stepped out from behind the curtains between the ‘JI’ and ‘NX’. She had a microphone in her hand and introduced herself as Rhiannon Mann. She cracked a few jokes and told them about the line up that evening then started her routine. JINX was a comedy club.</p><p>“Are you enjoying yourself?” Yennefer asked when the lights came up after the second comedian finished. Considering the sounds that Tissaia had been making for the last twenty minutes it seemed unnecessary to ask, but verbal confirmation never hurt.</p><p>“Very much,” said Tissaia. “I’ve never seen stand-up comedy before.”</p><p>“Not even on TV?”</p><p>Tissaia shook her head. “My father is of the frame of mind that comedy is a waste of time. I grew up on documentaries and financial forecasts.”</p><p>“Sounds riveting,” said Yennefer. No wonder Tissaia had grown up too fast. It didn’t sound like she’d had much of a childhood, and she had the right to judge that.</p><p>“Perfect children’s television,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“I hope that I can convert you to the funny side tonight,” said Yennefer.</p><p>“You already have, but I advise you to keep that information to yourself. I will deny it if asked.”</p><p>“Worried that your father won’t approve?”</p><p>“If he knew that I was here I imagine I’d get called into his office for a stern telling off.”</p><p>“Does he know that you aren’t a child anymore?” said Yennefer.</p><p>Tissaia shifted in her chair. “He is aware of that,” she said, “but my age doesn’t spare me from his rules or discipline.”</p><p>“This will be our little secret then.”</p><p>“Everyone has their guilty pleasures.”</p><p>“Comedy is a strange thing to feel guilty about.”</p><p>The lights dimmed and the first comedian came out to warm up the crowd for the second half. She asked if the crowd was having a good time and did the traditional ‘who’s here from [insert place name that will act as a segway into your next joke]’. The next comedian came on after she had finished joking about Oxenfurt and he talked about growing up. He asked if anyone was in from the university and a few tables behind them cheered. Tissaia said nothing despite Yennefer’s encouraging elbow in her side. When he asked if anyone had met their partner at university Tissaia couldn’t pull her hand away fast enough and Yennefer pulled her arm into the air. At the end of the night, Yennefer’s sides were sore from laughing and getting smacked in the ribs by Tissaia for her little stunt which had caught the comedian’s attention. For someone who was the talk of the museum event and doubtlessly other formal event, Tissaia did not enjoy the spotlight.</p><p>They jumped in a taxi and got out at Tissaia’s building. She invited Yennefer in, and they got comfortable on the sofa with Tissaia tucked under her arm.</p><p>“Is it too early to tell Calanthe that tonight was a success?” said Yennefer. “Because her messages are clogging up my phone.”</p><p>“Bold of you to assume your mission was a success,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“Are you telling me we’re just cuddling for warmth because I can go upstairs and get a blanket.”</p><p>Yennefer moved to stand up and Tissaia pulled her back onto the sofa.</p><p>“Maybe you have wooed me a little,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“Then it was a good first date,” said Yennefer.</p><p>“Best date I’ve ever had.”</p><p>“Have you been on many?”</p><p>“Just the one.”</p><hr/><p>The copper theatre, according to Tissaia, had opened in Gors Velen Bay in 2004 and was considered to be the redevelopment’s biggest achievement. It was comprised of one large theatre hall, two smaller theatre halls, and a handful of shops, restaurants and a bar. It was the biggest theatre in Gors Velen and, evidenced in its price tags, catered to the upper bracket of society. The outside of the building was covered in metal plates with a copper shine and the windows at the front of the theatre above the entranceway spelt out its name. The inside was similarly decorated in wood, metal and stone in tones of copper and gold and the walls boasted photographs of their biggest shows and stars.</p><p>Yennefer followed Tissaia into the main theatre hall and they took their seats. They were on the first of three raised seating areas and were at the front of the row to the left of the stairs that led to the top of the platform. Tissaia said that they were among the best seats in the house and she had purchased them when the performance was announced three months ago in November. Originally Tissaia had intended to go with her grandmother, but when she’d asked if she might take a friend instead because they had never experienced the theatre before, she had graciously donated her ticket to Yennefer.</p><p>It was the second week of February and their fourth big date. The weekend after JINX they’d gone out to sea on a dinner cruise. The food had been rich and wonderful and the music from the band had accompanied them when they’d gone out to the deck and enjoyed the stars. The weekend after that they went to an indoor tropical-themed mini-golf course inside the Gors Velen shopping centre.  Between their Friday and Saturday date nights, Yennefer had often met Tissaia at university for lunch and sometimes accompanied her to the library and drew in her sketchbook while she worked. She had two books to use, one reserved for her designs and the other for days when she watched Tissaia across the table and traced her expression onto the page.</p><p>She had a dozen or so sketches of her in that little book and liked to work on them on the days when they were apart. While Yennefer would have been happy to be with Tissaia every day, they had decided to give each other some space and time alone. Calanthe had warned her that she would need to be patient. Tissaia enjoyed her own company and wasn’t used to having a lot of companionship. She needed to get used to it and as the weeks progressed they had been seeing each other more often. Typically, Yennefer didn’t like to wait for anything. Patience had never been her virtue and if she had to spend more money buying something in the store rather than get it cheap online and wait a day for the delivery then she would spend the extra money each and every time. She’d spent the first fifteen years of her life waiting for the things that she wanted to come to her and it hadn’t been until she’d taken action and tried to kill herself that those things ever came. But, she would give Tissaia all the time that she needed.</p><p>The lights in the theatre hall came down and the crowd hushed and went silent under the watchful eyes of middle-aged ushers in black waistcoats and red ties. After a beat, the music began and the curtains lifted. The production was called ‘Wicked’ and the theatre programme claimed that it was a famous and award-winning 2003 Broadway musical about the Wicked Witch of the West from the book ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ by L. Frank Baum and the 1939 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film ‘The Wizard of Oz’, which Yennefer had seen at Tissaia’s flat last night in preparation for the evening. The first act opened on people from the Land of Oz – Yennefer wasn’t going to call them Ozians because that sounded stupid – celebrating the death of the Wicked Witch Elphaba.</p><p>Yennefer enjoyed the music and thought that the musical was rather humorous – Tissaia’s father must not have known that when he let his daughter see the musical as a young girl – but what caught her attention and her interest were the costumes. They were often bright and excessively designed and while she would never be caught dead in it she liked Glinda the Good Witch’s blue fairytale dress the most for its use of colour highlights. When the curtains closed on the number ‘Defying Gravity’, which Yennefer had heard several renditions of on various talent shows, she flipped through the programme for more information about the backstage aspect of the production.</p><p>Tissaia went to use the bathroom and came back with two little cardboard pots of chocolate ice cream. The spoons hidden under the lid were fiddly to use and possibly designed with children or adults with abnormally small hands and fingers in mind and the ice cream itself lacked flavour. From her trips to the pantomime and theatre with school, Yennefer knew that you didn’t buy those little pots because they were good or because you were hungry. Rather, it was a tradition of the theatre alongside buying a programme or a pair of swirling handheld lights, and Yennefer was more than pleased to honour the sacred custom.</p><p>“Have you ever considered designing costumes for the theatre or television?” Tissaia asked.</p><p>Yennefer swallowed her last mouthful of ice cream. “I hadn’t,” she said. “But I’m beginning to.”</p><p>“What sort of productions would you like to design for?”</p><p>“I think doing work for fantasy shows would be interesting. More creative freedom, I’d imagine.”</p><p>Tissaia gave Yennefer her empty pot and rubbed her hands. “Do you have any such works in your sketchbook?” she asked.</p><p>“No,” said Yennefer, “but I plan to by tomorrow night. Can I keep the programme?”</p><p>“Yes, of course.”</p><p>An announcement told them that they had five minutes before the second act started. Yennefer got up and put their rubbish in a bin by the door where tonight’s ice-cream vendor was completing her last few transactions. She stretched her legs walking to the bar for a bottle of water and returned to her seat in time for the lights to dim. The curtains opened on the fallout of the first half and a musical number carried them into the start of the second act. This part of the show was more familiar to Yennefer because it tied into the events from the film and she understood why Tissaia had strongly suggested that she watched it yesterday. ‘Wicked’ offered a new perspective and encouraged you to reconsider your thoughts about characters from the film and she wondered if there were other instances of productions visiting an antagonist’s point of view.</p><p>After a satisfying ending the lights came up and the cast took to the stage. Yennefer clapped along with the rest of the theatre and Tissaia dragged her out the door the moment the curtains closed on the Land of Oz. They managed to make it out and onto the landing before the flood gates opened and held hands to stop them from getting separated in the deluge of sequined, perfumed and buttoned up theatre-goers that poured out of the door and swept down to the bar that was manned and ready for impact. Tissaia led her downstairs and into the entrance lobby and they sat down on some copper benches outside a souvenir shop with ‘Wicked’ mugs and Copper Theatre fridge magnets displayed in the windows.</p><p>“Have you enjoyed yourself?” Tissaia asked.</p><p>“Yes,” said Yennefer. “It was a good show. I think I’d like to do something like this again.”</p><p>If I win enough money in the lottery to be able to buy a ticket without spending my life savings, she thought. Tissaia’s grandmother had been kind enough to give her the ticket for free, otherwise, she would have had to give Calanthe an IOY in overtime for the next month.</p><p>“Perhaps we could go to a performance at the Matchstick Company next week,” said Tissaia. “They’re a small production company based in one of the old manufacturing buildings near the docks. There are about thirty seats per show so the performance is very intimate. I think they might be doing Pinocchio at the moment.”</p><p>That sounded like an affordable alternative. Yennefer approved. “Sounds good,” she said.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Some more fluff, enjoy. The prompt I'm currently working on (yes I know I said it would be out by now but I got carried away with myself - okay) will be mostly angst with a dash of fluff thrown in the balance things out</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. The Next Step</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They walked down the street and climbed into a taxi that took them back to Tissaia’s flat. On their other two date nights, and once or twice during the weekdays in between, Tissaia had shared her bed with Yennefer and the arrangement had been entirely platonic with a little bit of cuddling thrown on the side. The physical aspect of their developing relationship had been the hardest change for Tissaia. After the bar crawl, she’d felt awkward and uncertain about kissing but had gotten comfortable with that level of intimacy after a few nights. They had made out on her couch that Wednesday and stopped before things progressed any further. Yennefer had assured Tissaia that the lack of physical intimacy didn’t bother her because she didn’t want Tissaia trying anything that she didn’t feel ready for just to see to her needs. She hadn’t thought that Tissaia believed her, so when they got in from the theatre and Tissaia proposed that they have sex for the first time, she was reluctant to agree.</p>
<p>“Are you sure about this, Tiss?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“I am,” said Tissaia. She sat down next to Yennefer on the edge of the bed. “I want to take the next step.”</p>
<p>“But you look nervous.”</p>
<p>“I am nervous. Weren’t you the first time?”</p>
<p>Yennefer had to give her that. “I suppose I was,” she said.</p>
<p>“And now?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“Still nervous. I’ve never had sex with a woman.” Or had sex with anyone I was in a happy relationship – this was a relationship, wasn’t it? – with, Yennefer thought. In other words, she’d never fucked anyone with feeling before.</p>
<p>“And do you think you’re ready?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“Then why are you reluctant?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“Because I don’t think you’re going to be comfortable having sex yet.”</p>
<p>Tissaia had to think about that. “I don’t think I will be,” she said, “but I don’t believe that is going to change. I don’t deal well with new experiences. When I lose my virginity I’ll be uncomfortable because it’s something that I haven’t done before. It won’t be because I don’t want to do it and if I’m wrong, then I’ll tell you and we can stop.”</p>
<p>“Okay,” said Yennefer, “but there’s something else I need to know.”</p>
<p>“Go on.”</p>
<p>“Have you been drinking?” she asked.</p>
<p>Tissaia sighed into a laugh that was brief and quite. “Yen, I had a glass of wine almost four hours ago.” She raised a hand to Yennefer’s face and brushed her thumb against her cheekbone. “I can assure you that this isn’t because of a burst of liquid courage.”</p>
<p>“Just wanted to make sure.”</p>
<p>“I appreciate your concern,” said Tissaia. She leaned forwards and brushed her lips against Yennefer’s. “Now, fuck me before sexual frustration gets the better of both of us.”</p>
<p>Yennefer laughed. “I don’t think I’ve heard you swear before,” she said. Which was a shame because coming out of her mouth it sounded rather amusing. If Tissaia ever got angry with her and started to swear Yennefer didn’t think she’d be able to keep a straight face.</p>
<p>Tissaia hummed. “I guess you must be rubbing off on me,” she said. “I always suspected that you would be a bad influence.”</p>
<p>“I thought you enjoyed my chaos,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“In small doses.”</p>
<p>“I don’t think you could handle-“</p>
<p>“Yen,” said Tissaia. “Stop talking.”</p>
<p>Yennefer smiled again and sat back on the bed. She pulled her legs up on top of the duvet and pushed back on Tissaia’s shoulder until she was lying down amongst the pillows.</p>
<p>“Are you ready?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“As I’ll ever be,” said Tissaia.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Yennefer rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and bite the inside of her cheek to stifle a yawn brewing at the back of her throat. Tissaia shifted in her sleep and mumbled a complaint into her bare shoulder. Yennefer returned her arms to Tissaia’s waist and chest and she settled. Her arms were about Yennefer, holding her tight, and their legs were in a tangled but comfortable mess. She was completely naked but Tissaia had refused to sleep in her birth clothes. ‘What if a fire started or an intruder broke in,’ she had said, ‘I’d rather not have to run for my life in the nude’. Yennefer thought that she was being overly practical and forward-thinking, but at least her choice of pyjamas was suitably flimsy. She’d rather not leave things to the imagination when she could have the real things.</p>
<p>The bedsheets had fallen to Yennefer’s hip and had pooled at her feet, entangling her in a nest of delightfully soft cotton that made her duvet feel like it was made from straw. The blanket that Tissaia liked to curl up in under the covers when she slept alone – she was practically cold-blooded - had been discarded at the end of the bed and hung off one corner of the mattress. Yennefer had briefly considered whether she might steal that rectangle of black fluff and soft pleasure but she didn’t think Tissaia would part with it easily. She had used it often enough that it smelt like her and Yennefer felt something akin to jealousy before remembering that she was the one wrapped about Tissaia now.</p>
<p>Last nights clouds had drifted out to sea and the early morning light grew across their through the slit in the curtains above Tissaia’s desk. This was the first time that Yennefer had woken up with Tissaia asleep in her arms. Typically their morning routine involved Tissaia waking her up by trying to get away and then swatting at her when she refused to let go. The struggle had always ended with Tissaia reading the news in bed on her phone for fifteen minutes until she had appeased Yennefer’s neediness and got ready for university.</p>
<p>Yennefer ran her hands through Tissaia’s loose hair and took the rare opportunity to study her unkept features. She felt Tissaia’s soft and even breath on her skin and would have pinched herself if she wasn’t worried about waking the woman draped across her chest and plastered to her side. Ten minutes into her observations the subject of her study stirred.</p>
<p>“Morning sleeping beauty,” said Yennefer. She craned her neck and kissed Tissaia on the temple. “How are you feeling?”</p>
<p>Tissaia rolled onto her back and raised her hands above her head. She stretched and her nightshirt rode up to reveal a few faint reminders of Yennefer’s work last night.</p>
<p>“Sore,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer turned onto her side and propped herself up with one elbow. She ran a hand down her lover’s side. “Maybe you should stay in bed today and let me wait on you,” she said.</p>
<p>Tissaia hummed sleepily and closed her eyes. “The sounds nice.”</p>
<p>“I’ll get you some breakfast.”</p>
<p>Yennefer got out of bed and picked up her top and yesterday’s pair of black laced pants off the floor and got changed. While she would like to walk around the flat naked, if only to see Tissaia’s reaction to her lack of hygiene or coverings, Tissaia’s living room did have some rather large windows and they weren’t that high up. A lucky jogger in the park might catch more than they bargained for if they happened to look up at the right moment and thought Yennefer was hardly shy but she was already spoken for.</p>
<p>“What do you want?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“We are not eating in bed,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“You’ve let me do it before,” Yennefer said, referring to the night after the party.</p>
<p>“You were upset, and you got crumbs everywhere.”</p>
<p>“The sheets need changing anyway.”</p>
<p>Tissaia’s nose wrinkled. “Fine,” she said. “I’ll have a pastry and some smoothie.”</p>
<p>Yennefer curtseyed. “Your wish is my command.”</p>
<p>She padded downstairs and took a hazelnut croissant and a sultana scone out of the bread box. She heated them in the microwave and opened the fridge. Tissaia’s collection of fruit juice and smoothies was more impressive than the bottles lining her wine rack and her cupboard of coffees and tea bags combined. She had something for every colour of the rainbow and Yennefer knew that because she had organized the bottles according to that scale. Yennefer picked out a drink with a black lid and purple liquid with a label that read ‘Innocent Plus Power To The Purple, Pomegranate &amp; Raspberry Juice’. She poured two glasses and then put the bottle back in the wrong place to test how well Tissaia knew her flag.</p>
<p>A large wooden chopping board with a piece of meat on a bone carved into one side served as her tray and Yennefer carried the food and drinks upstairs. The bedroom door was ajar and sent went into the room backwards and elbowed the light switch to turn it on. Tissaia was sitting up in bed and frowning at her phone.</p>
<p>“Is something wrong?” Yennefer asked. She put the board on top of the desk and carried over Tissaia’s breakfast.</p>
<p>“No,” said Tissaia, “I was just a little surprised.” She placed her phone on the bedside table and took the plate and drink from Yennefer’s hand. “My father has asked me to come home next weekend but hasn’t said why.”</p>
<p>“Does he need a reason to see his daughter?”</p>
<p>“Perhaps he has some news to share with the family. Something to do with the company, maybe. I’m afraid that I will have to take a rain check on our visit to the Matchstick Company.”</p>
<p>That wasn’t an answer, but Yennefer decided not to press. “When will you go down?” she asked.</p>
<p>“After Valentines Day,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>They ate breakfast in bed and settled down to use the smart TV bolted into the wall opposite the bed that, judging by its request to sign into a Netflix account, Tissaia had never used. They watched the 1953 American western musical called ‘Calamity Jane’, which was loosely based on the life of a wild west heroine by the same name. During the song ‘A Woman’s Touch’ Yennefer got a phone call from a number that wasn’t in her contact list and took it in the corridor.</p>
<p>“Hello,” a woman said down the phone. Yennefer thought she recognized the voice but couldn’t remember where from. “Am I speaking with Miss Yennefer Vengerberg?”</p>
<p>“You are,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“My name is Emma Poole and I’m from The Valley. We’d like to offer you a position in our Gos Velen branch working on the shop floor.”</p>
<p>Miss Poole was the tall, red-haired and unremarkable middle-aged woman with a face like a smacked-arse that had interviewed her two weeks ago. Tissaia had notified her that The Valley was hiring people to work in their clothes department. The pay wasn’t much better than what she got at The Lioness and she enjoyed working at the bar, but The Valley had a lot of internal opportunities for training and better positions. It was a good first step towards getting an apprenticeship.</p>
<p>“Great,” said Yennefer. “When can I start?”</p>
<p>“We have an induction day the Wednesday after next,” said Miss Poole. “Are you available?”</p>
<p>“Yes.”</p>
<p>“I’ll send you the details by email. Congratulations, Yennefer.”</p>
<p>Miss Poole hung up and Yennefer went back into the master bedroom.</p>
<p>“I got the job,” she said.</p>
<p>“Well done,” said Tissaia. She paused the television and kissed Yennefer when she climbed back into bed and wrapped an arm around her. “One step closer.”</p>
<p>“I couldn’t have done it without you,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“You’re welcome.”</p>
<p>“That was supposed to be your cue to tell me that you didn’t do much and that it was all me.”</p>
<p>“I’m not in the habit of lying. Your CV was in a dreadful state before you met me. It would have gone straight into the recycling bin.”</p>
<p>That wounded Yennefer’s pride a little. “It wasn’t that bad,” she said. “Calanthe liked it.”</p>
<p>Tissaia clicked her tongue. “I can guarantee you that she never read it. You probably got the job because she liked you. Be glad she's not one for paperwork because if she had seen you CV then she might have thought better of hiring you.”</p>
<p>She reached sideways to pick up the glass of water that Yennefer had fetched for her. Tissaia liked to wash her juice down with H2O because it was good for dental hygiene, apparently. Yennefer had never cottoned on to the practice and yet she’d never had any trouble with her teeth. Never did get money from the tooth fairy though. Tissaia raised the glass to her lips and Yennefer caught her wrist before she could take a sip.</p>
<p>“I made you breakfast in bed,” said Yennefer. “You’re not allowed to be cruel to me until five. That’s the sacred rule.”</p>
<p>“The truth can hurt, but that’s hardly my fault,” said Tissaia. She passed the glass into her other hand and drank. “Speaking of your former boss, how do you think she’ll take the news?”</p>
<p>“Let’s find out.”</p>
<p>Yennefer sat back in the pillow and fished under the duvet for her phone. She found it dangling on the edge of the mattress and carefully extracted it. The poor and beaten-up thing probably wouldn’t survive another fall. She was a rather neglectful phone owner. Yennefer found Calanthe in her contacts and rang her. When she remembered that it was only ten in the morning she hung up and sent her a text instead that read ‘Facetime me. I have something important to show you’. Tissaia turned the film back on and Yennefer forgot about the message until the credits rolled and her phone started shimmying down the mattress.</p>
<p>She picked it up and saw that Calanthe had granted her request. She turned her phone sideways and held it out at arm’s length with her elbows slightly bent and accepted the call. Her face appeared in a tiny box in the right-hand corner and as her phone was connecting she saw Tissaia’s eyes flicker to the screen. Yennefer drew her arm closer around her waist.</p>
<p>“Don’t you dare,” said Tissaia. She sat up and pushed off Yennefer’s shoulder and leg but couldn’t move out of the frame. “I’m a state. She can’t-“</p>
<p>Yennefer’s phone made a sound and Calanthe’s face appeared on the screen. Her eyes were drooping and Yennefer thought she saw her unhealthily large thermal flask disappear out of shot before her face took up the entire screen. Yennefer could count the bags under her eyes.</p>
<p>Calanthe looked between her and Tissaia and smirked. “You two look like you had fun last night,” she said.</p>
<p>“I didn’t- we didn’t…” Tissaia stammered. Her cheeks were going flush. “That’s not-“</p>
<p>“But you look like you have,” said Calanthe.</p>
<p>“I had a nightmare.”</p>
<p>“Nightmares don’t bite.”</p>
<p>Tissaia’s eyes went wide and Yennefer gave her enough leeway to reach for her phone. She straightened up and slid a finger across the screen and accessed her camera. She held out her phone and slapped a palm against her neck to cover a few very visible hickeys. Yennefer laughed. Tissaia was glowing beetroot.</p>
<p>“You’re precious when you blush,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia put down her phone and started to brush her fingers through her hair. “I’ll get you back for this,” she said.</p>
<p>“Sounds kinky,” said Calanthe. “I’ll let you get back to it. Goodnight.”</p>
<p>“Wait,” said Yennefer. “I have something to tell you.”</p>
<p>“I thought this was show, not tell.”</p>
<p>That earned Yennefer another glare. She took a breath and dropped the N J word. Calanthe swore and Yennefer heard Eist wake with a start and roll out of bed onto the floor.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Things are going well. Hope you're enjoying domestic Tissaia and Yennefer :)</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
<p>PS: I'll be posting chapter 1 of an angst prompt Sunday and the second part on Thursday</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Baking Memories</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer pulled a black circular box with gold lettering and a red bow, and a white cardboard bag with rope strings out of her backpack. She walked quietly downstairs and stood behind the sofa. She leaned forwards and dropped the box and the bag into Tissaia’s lap, making her jump. Yennefer walked around the sofa and sat next to her.</p><p>“I thought we agreed not to do gifts,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“We also agreed on no Christmas presents,” said Yennefer. “Happy Valentines, Tiss.”</p><p>They kissed and Tissaia tried to pick off the circular seal that was keeping the bag closed but her nails were too short. The bane of all Lesbians. Yennefer got a knife from the kitchen and cut it open. Tissaia put the bag in her lap and peered inside. She smiled a pulled out a teddy bear. It had soft, scruffy milk chocolate fur and a red cotton heart sewn onto its left breast. There were two unfilled hearts on the bottom of its feet, and it had a black nose, black eyes, and a big smile. Tissaia held it with two hands, her thumbs overlapping just slightly about its middle. She sniffed and held the bear by her nose. It smelt like chocolate.</p><p>“It’s sweet,” said Tissaia. “What am I supposed to do with it?”</p><p>“Hold it when you’re missing me,” said Yennefer.</p><p>“Is this because you want your jacket back?”</p><p>“Wait. Do you wear my jacket when we aren’t together?”</p><p>Tissaia squeezed the teddy bear. “I didn’t say that,” she said. “That’s not-“</p><p>“Freudian Slip,” said Yennefer.</p><p>Tissaia pulled her chin towards her chest and looked into the bag. Her hair fell down her shoulders and hung about her face like a curtain, hiding her flushed cheek. Yennefer tried to cover her laugh with a cough. She didn’t want Tissaia to know that the tips of her ears turned red when she blushed. She had too much fun with it.</p><p>When the colour had drained from Tissaia’s ears she sat up and pulled out two scented candles. Yennefer had depleted her stock a few days ago when she’d drifted off to sleep in the bath with three candles lit. Tissaia had been the one to wake her up after banging on the door and asking what that smell was. Yennefer hadn’t known quite how potent the candles would be. They’d had to put the towels and the bathroom mat through the wash twice to get rid of the smell.</p><p>The last item that she took out was a photo frame. Tissaia was rather old-fashioned when it came to photos and liked to collect pictures for her photo albums and display them in unique and themed frames. Yennefer had purchased this particular item at a crafts market in town last Friday. It was made by the local craftsman that had made the glass underwater photo frame that Tissaia had brought at the aquarium and it was decorated with an array of multi-coloured flowers. They covered the bottom of the frame and wound up the right side of a photo of them sitting in the park that Philippa had taken last week.</p><p>“It’s beautiful,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“I knew you’d like it,” said Yennefer.</p><p>They got up from the sofa and went into the kitchen. There were two shelves next to the kitchen island and under the stairs. The top shelf had a potted orchid with white petals that were tainted pink in the centre and a picture frame angled facing inwards on either side. On the right was the underwater frame with their picture from the aquarium and on the left a formal family photo taken five years ago that was in a glass frame of white flowers. Tissaia had said that it was the last picture they’d had taken together before her grandfather passed away. It had three different generations in it. Both sets of Tissaia’s grandparents were standing on a raised platform at the back and in front of them were Tissaia’s mother and father, three aunts and two uncles. Sitting before them was Tissaia, in front of her parents, and her four cousins. She was the only single-child in her family.</p><p>Tissaia pushed the orchid to the back of the shelf and moved her family photo in front of it and put the new photo frame in its old spot. She nudged the pictures until they were symmetrical and stepped back to admire her photo shelf. Yennefer wrapped her arms around Tissaia’s chest and put her chin on the top of her head.</p><p>The second shelf underneath had three pictures as well. One of Tissaia and her parents; one of a sixteen-year-old Tissaia on piano (the picture was seven years old – Tissaia was 23) playing music with her grandmother and late grandfather; and one of Tissaia and Pavetta that had been taken a few weeks before her Hen party and her wedding. Yennefer had found it hiding in the back of Tissaia’s closet when she’d been searching for something of hers to steal. When Yennefer asked about it Tissaia had said that sight of it had made her guilty, but that she hadn’t been able to bring herself to part with it. A few days later, Yennefer had noticed it in centre-space on the bottom shelf.</p><p>Tissaia’s leant back into Yennefer and held the arms about her chest. “It’s perfect,” she said. “Thank you.”</p><p>“I’m glad you like it,” said Yennefer. “I brought one for myself too. It’s the first photo frame I’ve ever had.”</p><p>“I’m honoured,” said Tissaia. “Can I expect any more surprises today?”</p><p>“Just the one. I’m taking you out after lunch. Wear something you don’t mind getting dirty.”</p>
<hr/><p>Rows of blue and silver cardboard hearts with a shiny and metallic tint hung from the walls and the railings on the second-floor platform on flimsy white strings that had knots in several places so that they were all different lengths. There was a pile lying in a heap on the floor at the foot of the raised stage on the dance floor and the heart-shaped confetti that had been scattered across the tables had ended up all over the bar. Calanthe opened up a small step ladder and held the base while Yennefer climbed up and stood on the top. She pulled a flat-topped pin out of the wall and one row of hearts swung to the right and hung limply. She pulled out two more and a metre long section of the valentine decorations dropped to the floor. Yennefer climbed down the step ladder and when Calanthe had moved it to the right she went back up and started on the next row.</p><p>“How was the baking class?” Calanthe asked.</p><p>“Good,” said Yennefer. “We enjoyed it a lot.”</p><p>The valentines day baking class had been Calanthe’s suggestion. Tissaia and Pavetta had often baked as children and Tissaia had an insatiable sweet tooth. The tickets had cost Yennefer a day of unpaid labour helping Calanthe and Eist take down the valentine decorations at The Lioness and it had been a worthwhile exchange.</p><p>A row of hearts dropped to the floor and they moved on to the last row.</p><p>“Was Tissaia any good?” Calanthe asked.</p><p>Yennefer wiggled a particularly stubborn pin. “She’s better at cooking,” she said.</p><p>“That’s a no, then.”</p><p>“Did you and Eist do anything?” Yennefer asked.</p><p>Calanthe smirked. “Nothing that I can tell you about,” she said.</p><p>Yennefer didn’t know what she had expected. That always did the same indoor activity on holidays. Though sometimes they took it outdoors too.</p><p>The last of the hearts came down and they threw the pieces of coloured cardboard and string into a green and see-through recycling bag that let your noisy neighbours see just how much you’d been drinking. The decorations were beyond salvaging. They took the bags out the back and heaved them into the recycling bin. All that they had left to do was the confetti. Calanthe passed Yennefer a broom and they started sweeping the little hearts into piles.</p><p>“Do the Lawrences know about you two yet?” Calanthe asked.</p><p>“No,” said Yennefer. “But Tissaia said she might tell her parents today. Her father asked her to come home for the weekend. She left this morning.”</p><p>“What does he want from her?”</p><p>“Does he need a reason to see his daughter?” Yennefer asked. Tissaia hadn’t given her a straight answer, but she might.</p><p>“Yes,” said Calanthe. “He’s always been more of a businessman than family man. He probably wants her to represent them at another event, or he might be using her for legal advice.”</p><p>“I don’t like the sound of him.”</p><p>Calanthe straightened up and leant against her broom. “Wait until you meet him. That is the next step. Think you’re ready?”</p><p>No fucking way, Yennefer thought. “Sure,” she said. “How bad can it be?”</p><p>“Code red,” said Calanthe. “You do know this is the Lawrences we’re talking about.”</p><p>Yennefer shrugged. “And?”</p><p>“They’re going to have very high expectations.”</p><p>“You don’t think I’m good enough for her?”</p><p>“I think you’re perfect together, but you won’t be what her family are expecting.”</p><p>“In what way?”</p><p>“In every way,” said Calanthe. She leant her broom against the wall and got a dustpan and brush from the behind the bar which she passed to Yennefer. “Have you thought about the responsibilities you’ll be taking on?”</p><p>“What responsibilities?” Yennefer asked. She got down on her knees and started sweeping up the pile.</p><p>“As Tissaia’s partner, you will be expected to attend events with her and to represent her family name.”</p><p>“You make it sound like I’m marrying into some royal line.”</p><p>“It is rumoured that the Lawrences are descended from royalty.”</p><p>Yennefer looked up. “You’re kidding,” she said.</p><p>“I’m not,” said Calanthe.</p><p>“Maybe I should start calling her princess,” said Yennefer. “She’ll hate it.”</p>
<hr/><p>Yennefer left The Lioness around six in the evening and headed home. At the door to her building, she took a set of keys out of her jacket pocket and realized they were the wrong ones. She had picked up the spare keys for Tissaia’s building by mistake and must have left hers there. Yennefer turned around and headed back into town. She used the black fob to open the security door and walked into the entrance lobby and up the stairs. She unlocked the door to Tissaia’s flat and went inside.</p><p>To her surprise, Tissaia had left the downstairs lights on. Something serious must have distracted her for that to happen. She usually triple checked that everything in her flat was off before locking the door. Yennefer made a note to ring Tissaia later and ask if something was wrong. She picked up her keys from the wooden bowel by the door and dropped the spare keys inside. She turned to the light switch and kicked something with her foot. A pair of Tissaia’s heels were lying on the floor by the door. Yennefer bent down and picked them up. They looked like the shoes that Tissaia had been wearing about the flat when she’d left that morning to go to The Lioness.</p><p>Yennefer swallowed and her throat stang. Something was very wrong. She put the shoes back by the door and went further into the flat. What she saw confirmed her suspicions. Tissaia’s coat was hanging off the back of the sofa like the cotton shawl she used in her flat to hide the stains on the ragged fabric cushions. Her little black suitcase was standing by the stairs with its handle up and her laptop case and notebook were on the dining table. Tissaia had come home early. Or, she’d never left.</p><p>“Tissaia,” said Yennefer.</p><p>No response.</p><p>Yennefer took off her shoes and went upstairs. None of the lights were on but the bedroom door was open a crack.</p><p>“Tissaia,” she said again.</p><p>The curtains in the master bedroom were wide open and the lights from a nearby building and the city centre below were enough to cast a faint glow across the room. Yennefer stood in the doorway and waited a beat for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She could see the outline of a bin by the side of the bed and what looked like crumbled tissues surrounding its base like a cloud around the tip of a mountain. Tissaia was curled up on top of the covers and her hair was down and strewn across their face. Yennefer moved up carefully to the bed and pulled the hair out of Tissaia’s face. Her eyes were closed and she didn’t react when Yennefer touched her face. She was sleeping. Yennefer felt something wet against her fingers and turned on the lamp to see why.</p><p>It looked like Tissaia had cried herself to sleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Uh Oh.</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Saturday Xx</p><p>PS: Part two of my angst prompt 'The Conduit Map' comes out tomorrow (Thursday)</p><p>PSS: took out the paragraph about baking cause I don’t know shit xD thank you for pointing it out. My food tech teacher lied to be - (they told me baking was less of a science than cooking though I might be remembering that wrong. Maybe they said it provided more creative opportunities than cooking?)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Breaking Glass</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer got down on her hands and knees and used a clean tissue to pick up the litter from the floor and drop it in the bin. It looked like Tissaia had gotten through half a box. She finished tidying and put the metal basket back in the corner beside the desk and took the jug on Tissaia’s nightstand downstairs and into the kitchen. She refilled it with cold water from a bottle in the fridge and collected some ice from the slot in the freezer door with a glass from the drying rack. That morning they’d had to wash the dishes in the sink and when Yennefer had helped Tissaia dry the frying pan and bowel that they’d used for making pancakes, Tissaia had kissed her goodbye and promised to call her before she went to bed. Tissaia had been happy when she’d left her flat for The Lioness.</p><p>After hanging up Tissaia’s coat, Yennefer took the jug upstairs and set it down next to Tissaia. She sat down on the bed above Tissaia’s knees and pulled out one of the last tissues from the box on the nightstand and dried Tissaia’s face. Yennefer had never seen her cry before. When Tissaia had sat through ‘The Titanic’ without shedding a tear, she’d told her that she rarely cried and that the last time had been at Pavetta’s funeral a few years ago. Yennefer threw the tissue in the bin on the other side of the room and smoothed down Tissaia’s hair. When she’d been cleaning at The Lioness Yennefer had gotten a text from Tissaia letting her know that’d she’d arrived home. She’d never said she’d be coming back early. What could have happened to her at home to make her come back, and why hadn’t she called?</p><p>Yennefer’s hand froze midway through combing Tissaia’s hair and she pulled away. Her fingers hovered above Tissaia’s face. While they’d been having breakfast that morning, Tissaia had told her that she would tell her parents that they were dating. Yennefer had been worried about how they would react, but Tissaia had assured her that it would be fine. What if she’d been wrong? Yennefer pulled the lamp to the edge of the bedside table and checked Tissaia’s face. Her eyes were slightly red and puffy but it was from crying, and not something else. Other than that, Tissaia looked fine. Yennefer drooped forwards and let out a long, slow breath. This wasn’t the worst-case scenario.</p><p>For good measure, Yennefer rolled up Tissaia sleeves and checked her arms. No finger marks. She put Tissaia arm back down on the cover and she mumbled and shifted on the bed. Tissaia’s eyes opened a fraction and Yennefer squeezed her hand. She watched Tissaia rub her forehead and roll onto her back. Yennefer kept hold of her hand and Tissaia’s fingers curled around hers and she looked at her. It was the best impression of someone caught in the act of cheating that Yennefer had ever seen. Tissaia smiled at her and then her eyes went wide and she sat up in bed and backed herself up against the headboard.“What are you doing here?” Tissaia asked.</p><p>“Forgot my keys,” said Yennefer. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>Tissaia looked sideways. “It’s nothing. I’m fine.”</p><p>“Bullshit,” said Yennefer. She shuffled up the bed and placed a hand on Tissaia’s cheek and turned her face towards her. “Tell me what’s wrong.”</p><p>Tissaia pulled her head away from Yennefer’s hand and turned around. She swung her legs down and sat on the opposite side of the bed. She wouldn’t look at her.</p><p>“I’m tired,” said Tissaia. “We can talk about this in the morning. You should go home. I’ll walk you to the door.”</p><p>Tissaia got up from the bed and Yennefer jumped to her feet and turned on the bedroom light. She stopped Tissaia at the foot of the bed and held her chin in her fingers. She titled her head up and to the side and looked at the side of her face that Tissaia had been sleeping on. No bruises or marks. Then why wouldn’t she look at her?</p><p>“What are you doing?” Tissaia asked.</p><p>“It doesn’t matter,” said Yennefer. She let go of Tissaia’s chin and put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m not leaving you like this.”</p><p>“Yen…“</p><p>“I can do this all night.”</p><p>Tissaia crossed her arms over her chest and stepped back. She turned around and walked up to her desk and stood in front of the window looking like she was posing for the poster image of a film about wives waiting for their husbands to come home from the war. Yennefer stayed where she was and waited. After a minute or two – it was hard to know exactly how long went by when you were holding your breath – Tissaia turned around and answered her questions. But Yennefer wished she hadn’t.</p><p>“I- I can’t do this anymore,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“Can’t do what?” Yennefer asked.</p><p>“This… Us.”</p><p>Yennefer blinked. She felt her chest tighten like it was caught in a vice. All her energy drained, Yennefer wobbled on her feet and reached out for the wooden dresser to steady herself. Her brain kept trying to tell her that she’d misunderstood. Tried to convince her that this wasn’t what it looked like. But it was.</p><p>“No,” said Yennefer. “This can’t be it.”</p><p>“It is,” said Tissaia. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>Yennefer let go of the dresser and took two steps back. “I don’t understand. I thought things were going well. I thought you were happy.”</p><p>“I am happy, but-“</p><p>“Then why are you doing this?” Yennefer shouted. “What have I done wrong?</p><p>Tissaia’s eyes met hers and then she looked away. “Nothing,” said Tissaia. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”</p><p>“Then what the hell is this about?”</p><p>“I know this must have come as a surprise to-“</p><p>Yennefer banged her fist against the top of the dresser and Tissaia flinched. “That’s fucking understatement,” said Yennefer. “Things were fine this morning. They were perfect. What could have happened since then for you to end things without giving me a second chance?”</p><p>The question stunned Tissaia and Yennefer watched her while she tried to think up an explanation. She got there first.</p><p>“Your parents didn’t approve,” said Yennefer. “Did they?”</p><p>Calanthe had warned her that the Lawrences would have high expectations, after all. She wasn’t surprised to find that they didn’t like her, but she’d thought she would at least have a chance to meet them and change their mind. But apparently not.</p><p>“It’s complicated,” said Tissaia.</p><p>“No, it isn’t,” said Yennefer. “Either they approved or they didn’t. Which is it?”</p><p>Tissaia ducked her head and rubbed her arms. That told her enough.</p><p>“Look at me,” Yennefer shouted. “You fucking look at me when you’re stabbing me in the back.”</p><p>Tissaia raised her head and Yennefer saw a tear glinting on her left cheek. She didn’t deny the accusation, Yennefer noted.</p><p>“Tell me,” said Yennefer. “Why aren’t I good enough for them? Is it my background? My job? Do they think I’m dangerous? Reckless? Is it-“</p><p>“Stop it,” said Tissaia. Her voice was strained from holding back tears. “It’s not like that.”</p><p>“Is it because I’m a woman?” Yennefer asked.</p><p>Tissaia pulled down her top. “No,” she said.</p><p>“Then what is it that they don’t approve of?”</p><p>“It doesn’t matter,” said Tissaia.</p><p>She crossed her arms back over her chest, hugging herself like she was staving off Gors Velen’s infamous winter chill, and turned towards the window. Yennefer stormed up to her, grabbed Tissaia’s shoulders and spun her around.</p><p>“It matters to me,” said Yennefer. “Tell me. You fucking owe me that.”</p><p>She didn’t need to hear the answer. Guilt saturated Tissaia’s face unmistakably. “I don’t know,” she said quietly. “I didn’t ask.”</p><p>Yennefer threw her head back and ran her hands through her hair. She stepped back a few paces then spun on her heels and walked to the other side of the bed, keeping it between them like a barricade. Her hands dropped to her sides and she balled them into fists. She saw Tissaia’s laundry bin in the corner by the wardrobe and kicked at one of its flimsy wooden legs. It buckled under the toe of her boot and fell forwards with a soft, padded thump and bled out a pair of black underpants and a white vest that belonged to her. It’s what she’d slept in last night.</p><p>She picked it up and smelt a hint of cocoa butter, the fragrance from the full-body moisturiser that Tissaia liked to use, and there was a strand of brown hair caught in the fabric where Tissaia had put her head. Yennefer scrunched it up in her hands and threw it against the wardrobe. It bounced off and hung itself from the handle when one of the shoulder straps got caught around the knob.</p><p>Yennefer backed up into the bed and dropped onto the mattress. “This is unbelievable,” she said to the wall. “I thought I meant something to you.”</p><p>Tissaia spoke behind her. “You do-“</p><p>“If you cared then you would have fought for me,” Yennefer shouted. “For us.”</p><p>“I did,” said Tissaia. “I swear.”</p><p>“Liar.”</p><p>In one fluid movement, Yennefer stood up and grabbed the empty glass from Tissaia’s nightstand and pulled back her arm. She spun on her heels and threw it at the wall opposite the foot of the bed. It shattered and the broken pieces of glass fell on Tissaia’s head. She let out a wrangled scream and covered her face with her arms.</p><p>“Shit,” said Yennefer. She hadn’t heard Tissaia move.</p><p>Tissaia stumbled backwards and jerked her foot away from the floor with a cry.</p><p>“Don’t move,” said Yennefer.</p><p>The glass crunched under the soles of her black Doc Martens as she walked up to Tissaia and picked her up. She carried her away from the glass and put her down on the edge of the bed. She knelt in front of Tissaia, pulled off her socks and checked the bottom of her feet. Her left foot was slightly scratched but it wasn’t bleeding. Yennefer put Tissaia’s feet down, stood up and threw the socks onto the bed. Tissaia had a hand wrapped around the lower part of her right arm which Yennefer pulled away. An inch below the bone in her wrist was a cut that ran diagonally towards the bend of her elbow. It was short enough for Tissaia to cover it with one hand – and her hands were tiny – and the damage looked superficial, but the glass had cut the skin deep enough to make it bleed.</p><p>Yennefer pulled a handful of tissues out from the tissue box and thrust them into Tissaia’s hand. She left the bedroom and turned on the light for the bathroom. There was a long bath and shower unit against the far wall the could comfortably accommodate two people in a relaxing bubble bath – Yennefer knew from experience. The floor and the wall opposite the door were tiled with white-grey ceramics that had a nice marbled effect to make the room look extra fancy. The white bath, toilet and sink had smoothed and curved edges and the other three walls were covered in tiles of off-white. The sink was set into a double-doored cabinet and there was a metre long mirror above the sink that Tissaia cleaned religiously after she had showered or brushed her teeth. Yennefer ducked her head to avoid seeing her reflection and pulled open the cabinet doors.</p><p>A green zipped bag with a white cross was on the bottom shelf at the back. Yennefer took it out. The bag felt heavy in her hand. It was the same first aid kit that Istredd had used when he’d pushed Tissaia down the stairs. Now she was using it because she’d smashed a glass by her head. Yennefer kicked the doors shut and went back into the bedroom. Tissaia was exactly where she had left her on the bed. She was moving her hand up and down her arm and the tissues that she had given her were bloodied in her lap. The cut on Tissaia’s arm looked red and sore and seemed to be bleeding more heavily. Tissaia was scratching at her cut.</p><p>“Don’t do that,” said Yennefer.</p><p>She pulled Tissaia’s hand away from her arm and re-examined it. There was blood underneath Tissaia’s fingernails and she had opened up the small scratch in her arm and there were raised and angry red lines surrounding and going past and over the cut. What had she been thinking? Yennefer sat down next to her and put the first aid kit in her lap. She rummaged around for a disinfectant wipe and a plaster and set them down on the bed. She put the bag on the bed, picked up her supplies and turned to her patient.</p><p>Tissaia was watching her with tears in her eyes that did nothing to help soothe Yennefer’s guilty conscious. She tore the top off the disinfectant package and pulled at the single-use wipe then unwrapped the plaster. Tissaia winced when the wipe touched her skin and Yennefer tried to be as quick as she could. After passing over the cut three times Yennefer dropped the wipe in her lap and applied the plaster. She felt the urge to kiss it better but pushed it away. Instead, she took the tissues from Tissaia and picked up the packaging and the wipe and put them in the bin. Glass was spread across the carpet by the foot of the bed and to the left of it.</p><p>Yennefer went to the wardrobe and took out Tissaia’s slippers which she threw on to the bed. “Put them on before you hurt yourself,” she said.</p><p>She leant against the wardrobe with her hands buried in her pockets and watched Tissaia pick up her slippers and put them on. The soles weren’t very thick, but they would provide enough padding to stop her from cutting her feet if she stood on a piece of glass. Yennefer had no intention of putting her back in the hospital.</p><p>When’d she finished putting her slippers on, Tissaia looked up and drew a long breath that quavered. “Yennefer, please,” she begged. “Give me time. I’m sure my parents will come around.”</p><p>“And if they don’t?” Yennefer asked.</p><p>Tissaia stared down at her hands and a tear rolled off her chin and onto her top. It pissed Yennefer off. Tissaia had made this choice. She wasn’t the one being abandoned.</p><p>“You’re a fucking coward, Tissaia,” said Yennefer. “Your parents told you no and you tucked your tails between your legs and obeyed. And for what? The family name? For their approval? Why do you care about what they think of us? We’re happy together. Isn’t that enough? Why would you throw what we have away because it displeases them? Can’t you just be selfish for once in your life and do something for yourself. Fuck your family. Fuck the Lawrences. What do you want, Tissaia?”</p><p>Tissaia stood up and regained her typical Lady’s finishing school ridged posture and clasped her hands in front of her. Yennefer’s hands trembled.</p><p>“I want you to leave,” Tissaia said in a calm but slightly high-pitched voice.</p><p>Yennefer couldn’t speak. She spun on her heels and barged out the door. The steps groaned in protest under her heavy boots as she jumped down two steps at a time. She went into the kitchen, pulled open the door to the fridge and snatched the bottle of wine that they had opened last night. Tissaia wouldn’t need it anymore now that she would only be pouring for one. Yennefer stuffed the bottle into her work bag by the door, slung it over her shoulder and straightened up. Over her shoulder she saw Tissaia standing at the bottom of the stairs looking either too afraid or unsure about whether it would be a good idea to come near her – Yennefer couldn’t decide which. When she looked away her eyes drifted to the shelves under the stairs. She saw their two glass picture frames, went over, and picked them up.</p><p>“I guess you won’t be wanting these anymore,” said Yennefer.</p><p>She backed up until Tissaia could see what she was holding then turned to the kitchen island and raised her arm.</p><p>“No,” Tissaia shouted. She ran forwards and grabbed Yennefer’s arm. Tissaia was crying again. “Please don’t,” she said.</p><p>Yennefer’s hand trembled and she slowly lowered her arm. Tissaia took the photo frames from her and held them against her chest. Yennefer felt a flash of regret and grimaced at the thought of what’s she’d almost done. Hadn’t she already caused enough collateral damage? She didn’t need to finish things off by ruining something precious to Tissaia too. Yennefer’s face peered at her over Tissaia’s arm against a backdrop of glass, water and large exotic fish.</p><p>Yennefer went to the front door and triple checked that she had the right keys. She turned the lock, opened the door and took one last look at Tissaia.</p><p>“Your family don’t deserve you,” said Yennefer. “They don’t care about you. Not like I do.”</p><p>Before Tissaia could respond, Yennefer stepped into the corridor and closed the door on the best thing that ever happened to her. And the most painful experience of her life.</p><p>She’d been right. It hadn’t been the worst-case scenario. It had been the second-worst instead.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>ANGST.</p><p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p><p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Wrong Trip</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warning: this chapter contains substance/alcohol abuse.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Two shots of vodka,” Yennefer roared over the noise of the bar.</p>
<p>She waved a ten-pound note in the face of the young female bartender who looked barely legal but who had to be at least eighteen. With a look that told Yennefer this had to be her first time behind a bar, because she knew she wasn’t nearly annoying enough to faze a seasoned veteran, unless they were having a particularly bad day – she’d been there more than once - the young bartender snatched up her note and went to the till. Yennefer watched her battle with the stubbornly unresponsive touchscreen monitor and threw the change into her small black bag that was a snug fit for her iPhone. She tapped her ring against the sticky surface of the counter and looked around for Calanthe. She wasn’t in sight. Perfect, Yennefer thought. She watched a couple standing next to her bicker about the cocktail pitcher they wanted to share. If she had been working Yennefer would have suggested ‘Sex on the Beach’. It was the pitcher she enjoyed making the most.</p>
<p>What with today – or was it tomorrow yet? – being a Friday night The Lioness was packed to bursting point where each move you made had to be well calculated and thought out if you didn’t want to accidentally brush someone’s arse, or the arse of somebody’s partner. Unless you were looking for a fight. Yennefer assumed that the girl who was pouring her two shots was her replacement since her last shift at The Lioness had ended in the early hours of that same Friday morning. When she’d originally been faced with the prospect of leaving Calanthe and The Lioness, Yennefer had felt sad to go. But yesterday she’d been glad to get her final shift in this hellhole dun and dusted and had walked out the door the moment that clock struck zero three hundred.</p>
<p>“Here,” said the young bartender. She put two shots of vodka on the bar in front of her and a little splashed on the side. That was how you knew they hadn’t skimped on your shot.</p>
<p>“Cheers,” said Yennefer. She picked one shot glass in her right hand and one shot glass in her left hand and downed them in rapid succession. The liquor burned her throat and Yennefer shook her head. She slammed the glasses down on the table and slipped them across the bar.</p>
<p>The bartender looked applaud.</p>
<p>“It’s been a long week,” Yennefer said as she got up and went to find Philippa.</p>
<p>The night Tissaia had broken up with her Yennefer had made the grave mistake of going to The Lioness and spilling her guts to Calanthe over a glass of double vodka and coke and three empty shot glasses. Her former boss had seemed as surprised as Yennefer had felt when receiving Tissaia’s relationship resignation notice out of nowhere and, because she was invested in their relationship like a stay at home mother living her life through reality TV, she had gone into a state of denial about the whole affair. Calanthe had quizzed her all night about exactly what Tissaia had said, what she had said, how Tissaia had reacted, what Tissaia had been like that week, what Tissaia had said about her family visit, blah, blah, blah.</p>
<p>After downing her fourth shot Yennefer had called it quits and sulked into a taxi. She’d gone to Calanthe for moral support and had been hoping that she would help make her feel better, not worse. Why did she have to be so concerned about Tissaia, Yennefer had thought. What about her broken heart? In her flat Yennefer had run to the toilet when her pity-party came back up her throat. After she’d cleaned herself up she’d collapsed into bed and been comatose for most of the next twelve hours. She’d called in sick for work that evening and Calanthe had let her sorry excuse slide. Maybe she did feel sorry for her? But on the other occasions, she hadn’t been quite as forgiving.</p>
<p>On the evenings that she had been sober enough to turn up to work Calanthe had decided to work next to her behind the bar and wouldn’t give her a moment's peace. What did Calanthe think she was going to do? Yennefer had wondered. Steal from behind the bar perhaps? Or maybe she wanted to stick around in case Tissaia turned up unannounced. But she never did. Yennefer hadn’t heard or seen hide nor hair of her ex-girlfriend since she’d chucked her out of her flat and her life two weeks ago. Calanthe, however, had been in contact with her and had tried to tell Yennefer how she was faring, but Yennefer always made an excuse to leave and took far too long to come back - just to make a point.</p>
<p>If it were up to her, Yennefer wouldn’t have come back, but it wasn’t. In The Lioness the drinks were cheap, the crowd was youthful and the lights were shady and besides being passable the music was loud enough that you could pretend not to hear your one-night stand because she hadn’t come out with Philippa and her friends to get to know him. His name was Matt, ‘short of Matthew, don’t you know?’ he’d said. And yes, she did know. She wasn’t an idiot. He was suitably handsome and fit with brown eyes and flicked back hair styled with enough gel that you could strike a match on it. Philippa knew him from her course and said that he hadn’t caused any of her other friends any problems in bed, and that was all Yennefer needed to know. She only needed to get laid. No more relationships for a while. Or ever. Experience had taught her that road was doomed from the start.</p>
<p>“You sure you wouldn’t rather have a woman?” Philippa asked when Yennefer returned to the dance floor.</p>
<p>“I’m sure,” Yennefer shouted. Taking a woman in bed would always feel too soon.</p>
<p>She danced with her sex date – if things went according to plan – for a while and then went out to have a cigarette with Philippa. Social smoking was another bad habit that had returned with a vengeance after she’d been dumped, alongside her poor eating habits, her reluctance to move out of bed, and her irresponsible indulgence in bottles and cans of the alcoholic kind. The latter defect, which she had exhibited in at Philippa and Sabrina’s flat a few days after she’d seen Tissaia was what had given her new relationship status away to her sisters. After she’d vehemently told them to fuck off they’d stopped asking for details. She didn’t need another nag having at her. Calanthe had already filled all three of those positions.</p>
<p>Yennefer took a last drag on her rolled-up poison and decided to return to the liquid kind. It didn’t leave a foul taste in her mouth. She went with Philippa to the bar and waited to put in her order, but the Lioness herself had other plans.</p>
<p>“I’m cutting you off,” Calanthe said when she materialized behind the bar like someone had used the /Summon TLC Barkeeper command in a video game. “You’ve had enough.”</p>
<p>Yennefer had already been plied with enough drink to make her head hurt and her vision swim, but the plan was to keep drinking until she was horizontal and she’d be damned if she let Calanthe interfere.</p>
<p>“You’re not the boss of me anymore,” said Yennefer. She waved her hand to catch the attention of the young bartender but she pretended not to see her.</p>
<p>Calanthe leant across the bar. “Keep talking like that and I’ll have you thrown out,” she said.</p>
<p>“Go ahead,” said Yennefer. “There are plenty of other places that will serve me.”</p>
<p>She pushed off the bar and disappeared into the throng of sweaty and hormonal bodies on the dance floor. She found her crew and started slating The Lioness in the hope that they would agree and go with her someplace else. Preferably someplace where she could drink without being hassled by a middle-aged and grouchy woman. A few of the others agreed and it looked like the tide was turning in her favour, until Philippa came back from the bar and put her foot down. They were staying and that was that. You didn’t disagree with Philippa when she put her foot down, not unless you were prepared to wage war on seven different social media platforms at once. The others, including Matt, went back to dancing and Philippa dragged Yennefer to the bathroom with her and they joined the five woman queue to get inside.</p>
<p>“Why aren’t we leaving?” Yennefer asked in a loud whisper. The bathroom was at the back of The Lioness and away from and the music, but the sound was still ringing in her ears.</p>
<p>“Because I don’t want to,” said Philippa.</p>
<p>“Bull,” said Yennefer. The person at the front of the queue stepped into the bathroom and the queue stepped forwards one. “Calanthe said something to you.”</p>
<p>“What makes you say that?”</p>
<p>“Because you were at the bar for a while and you came back without any drinks.” And Philippa didn’t do shots. She said it was something best enjoyed by the rabble and the paupers and she was neither. Which was also bullshit.</p>
<p>Philippa stepped forwards. They were two heads down from the door. “Calanthe asked me to keep you here so she can keep an eye on you,” she said.</p>
<p>“Typical,” said Yennefer. “I’ve resigned and she still won’t stop fucking interfering.” She pressed herself up against the wall behind Philippa to let a pair of young women covered in glitter get past without touching her. That stuff never came out.</p>
<p>“It’s for the best,” said Philippa.</p>
<p>“What’s that supposed to mean?”</p>
<p>Philippa stepped forwards. There was one person in front of them now. “You know exactly what I mean,” she said.</p>
<p>“You agree with her,” said Yennefer. “Are you serious?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” said Philippa, “and not just about your excessive and quite frankly alarming drinking habits. Tissaia was the best thing to ever happen to you and you let her go without a fight because your feelings got hurt. Get over it. Shit happens. If you stopped wallowing, then maybe you’d see that something is wrong about this. I can see it, and Calanthe can too.</p>
<p>“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Yennefer shouted. “Butt out.” She stepped out of the queue and went back into the lively bowels of The Lioness. Why was everybody on Tissaia’s side?</p>
<p>Sabrina and Matt were standing to one side of the dance floor, hiding in the corner with hardly enough space between them to slip an arm in and break them apart. Instead, Yennefer settled for pulling Matt around by the arm and kissing him hard. Sabrina must have skulked off because when Yennefer surfaced for air she had gone. Yennefer wiped the lipstick off Matt’s lips and told him to get her a drink.</p>
<p>According to Philippa and Calanthe in their Saturday afternoon reports, She and Matt had engaged in several rounds of messy and rough making out – was there any other way to do a rebound? – but it never went any further than that. They never even made it out of the club together. Yennefer couldn’t remember what they’d done. Her night ended talking with Philippa by the bathroom and the next thing she knew, she was waking up to bright lights and a pair of glasses on the end of a hooked nose who’s owner told here exactly where her late-night activities had taken her. To the hospital. But what was even more unexpected than the bed that she had ended up in was the second face she woke up to.</p>
<p>“Tissaia?” Yennefer said hoarsely.</p>
<p>Her ex was sitting in an uncomfortable-looking straight-backed chair with an aqua coloured rubber cushion for the seat that squeaked whenever you wiggled one of your cheeks. Her right elbow was staked into one of the splintered wooden armrests that was a garish yellow-brown and her right hand was balled in a loose fist that was pressed against the side of her head by her ear. Her hair was down and had fallen across her face and her clothes were in a complete state compared to their usual pristine condition – which would have meant they looked fine on just about anybody else. She had to have been unreasonably tired to have fallen asleep sitting like that, Yennefer thought. Her back ached just looking at her.</p>
<p>Yennefer blinked and squinted into the light. She had a splitting headache and felt like she’d been run over from top to bottom by one of those tractors with a large metal roller that they used to level out new roads. Yennefer rubbed her temples and felt a sting in the bend of her right elbow. She lifted her arm and noticed that she’d been connected to a drip. What the hell had happened to her last night? She closed her eyes and moaned.</p>
<p>“Sit up and drink this,” said a familiar voice.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked to her left and saw Calanthe standing beside her bed with a plastic cup of water. She did as Calanthe asked. It wasn’t that she’d forgotten about being angry at her, she just didn’t have the energy or the will to follow it through.</p>
<p>“You passed out at The Lioness around two in the morning,” Calanthe said without prompting. “Alcohol poisoning.” But that was all Calanthe felt inclined to share. She walked around Yennefer’s bed and shook Tissaia’s shoulder.</p>
<p>Tissaia mumbled and opened her eyes. She rubbed the back of her neck, stretched and looked sideways at Calanthe.</p>
<p>“I’ll wait outside,” Calanthe said, looking between them. She squeezed Tissaia’s shoulder and walked towards the ward’s double doors, leaving Yennefer alone with the number one person on her list of people I least want to be with right now. Calanthe was second.</p>
<p>Yennefer put her cup on the side table and sunk into her pillows. Yes, she was aware she looked like a moody child. No, she didn’t care. “What are you doing here?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Calanthe told me what happened,” said Tissaia. “I was worried about you.”</p>
<p>“Why?” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia sat up and her body stiffened. Yennefer wondered why her question had come as a surprise. Calanthe had been by her bed because she was like a mother to her. But Tissaia wasn’t anything to her anymore.</p>
<p>“Because I care about you,” said Tissaia, “and I wanted to see that you were alright.”</p>
<p>Yennefer crossed her arms over her chest and looked away. The sky outside the window at the end of the ward was lit up by tones of red, orange and gold. Dawn was coming, making it between half four and half five in the morning. Yennefer had walked home late often enough to know. She had never been in a rush to get back after a night out or the end of her shift. Not till Tissaia. Yennefer tilted her head to the right enough to be able to see her out of the corner of her eye.</p>
<p>Tissaia’s hands were occupied with carefully folding one of the jackets that had been hanging on the back of the chair – her jacket, to be precise. But something was must have been wrong about the way she had done it because Tissaia opened it up and tried again, and another time after that. Yennefer thought that her hands might have been shaking. She couldn’t quite tell. What she could see for certain, however, were the dark circles under Tissaia’s eyes. Or perhaps they only looked dark because of how much colour had been drained out of Tissaia’s face. She might have looked like one of those gay, sparkly vampires from <em>Twilight</em> if she didn’t seem so fragile. The white top that Yennefer had seen her wear before hung a little looser than it had before, and than it should. To summarise, Tissaia looked about as shitty as Yennefer felt – though she probably looked better than she did. Yennefer didn’t fancy looking in a mirror to check.</p>
<p>When she finished folding Yennefer’s jacket for the fifth time, Tissaia held the neat bundle in her lap. Then, she started to scratch the back of her hand and wrist and pushed her fingers up the sleeve of her jacket.</p>
<p>“Stop that,” Yennefer said before she could stop herself.</p>
<p>Tissaia’s eyes met hers and she pulled her hand out from under her sleeve and raked her fingernails over Yennefer’s jacket. When she had gone up and down the fabric enough times to blunt her nails, Tissaia put the jacket down and moved to the side of the bed and put her hand on the mattress near Yennefer’s right knee. “Yen-“</p>
<p>“Don’t call me that,” said Yennefer. She didn’t like the way it made her feel.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry,” said Tissaia. She took her hand away from the bed and cradled it in her other palm and blinked away the tears in her eyes.</p>
<p>Yennefer couldn’t find it in her to be sorry for her. It already felt like everyone else was on her side. “Get out,” she said</p>
<p>Tissaia didn’t move.</p>
<p>“I said get out,” Yennefer shouted. “I don’t want to see you anymore. Not ever. Go.”</p>
<p>Tissaia backed away from her bed and walked into the side of the chair. The chair legs screeched against the mottled grey floor and Yennefer winced and closed her eyes. She ran her hands over her face and through her hair and slid down the pillows. She opened her eyes to see Tissaia pulling her jacket off the back of the chair and wiping the tears off her cheek with its sleeve.</p>
<p>“This isn’t what I wanted.” Tissaia started scratching her neck. “I’m sorry,” she said, and ran out the door.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>MORE ANGST.</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Visiting Hour</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer waited half an hour then discharged herself from the hospital. The nurses tried to dissuade her but she wasn’t going to stick around unless her life depended on it, and it didn’t. The place had too many bad memories. The doors to Accident and Emergencies swung back and forth behind her and Yennefer checked the signs on the wall and went left down the corridor. When she neared the end Calanthe rounded the corner. She looked a little red in the face and out of breath.</p>
<p>“Where do you think you’re going?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Home,” said Yennefer. She stepped around Calanthe and took a right turn. There was an open space at the end of the corridor and a glass front that led outside.</p>
<p>Calanthe followed in pursuit. “I’ll drive you,” she said.</p>
<p>“I can find my way back,” said Yennefer. The taxi would be expensive but she’d rather cough up a few quid than get stuck driving around with her current second least favourite person. Especially since she’d been looking after the first.</p>
<p>“Don’t be daft,” said Calanthe. “You shouldn’t be by yourself.”</p>
<p>Yennefer walked out into the reception and waiting room. There was one man to the right of her, probably in his mid-twenties, wearing the bottom half of a traffic cone around his neck like an orange ruff.</p>
<p>“Then why didn’t you come back when Tissaia left?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“Because-“</p>
<p>“No, don’t tell me,” said Yennefer. “You had to go and check up on dear Tissaia and make sure she was alright. And I’m fine. Thanks for asking.” She pushed open the heavy steel and glass door and let it swing back into Calanthe’s face. Yennefer smiled when she heard the woman behind her curse and walked towards the stairs that went to the car park. Maybe she could catch a bus.</p>
<p>“It’s not what you think,” said Calanthe.</p>
<p>Yennefer stopped near the top step and turned around. “Then why is that what it looks like?”</p>
<p>“Tissaia fainted. I think she might have had a panic attack.”</p>
<p>“What?” said Yennefer. Tissaia had never warned her about that.</p>
<p>Calanthe climbed up to her level. “She passed out at the end of the corridor,” she said. “And before that, I saw her scratching her neck and chest. I saw marks all over her arms when I took her jacket off. Some of them were deep enough to have scabbed over. I tried to get a nurse to look at her, but she wouldn’t have it. I had to make sure she got into a taxi instead.”</p>
<p>“What’s wrong with her?” Yennefer asked. She moved back to let a young man with a black eye and an arm in a sling walk past.</p>
<p>“You saw her,” said Calanthe.</p>
<p>“Will she be alright?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>Calanthe sighed and scratched her head. “I don’t know,” she said, and smiled. “Glad to see that you still care though.”</p>
<p> “I don’t. Just wanted to know whether you would be ditching me again.”</p>
<p>“I’m all yours,” said Calanthe. “Will you let me take you home?”</p>
<p>“If you insist,” said Yennefer.</p><hr/>
<p>She slept until the early afternoon and woke up to a flat she hardly recognized. When Calanthe had said she’d clean her flat, Yennefer had thought that meant she’d throw her ready meal and takeaway boxes into the trash and take down the row of vodka bottles and cider cans that had turned her coffee table into a carnival game. Instead, her poor little flat had been subjected to a deep and intimate clean that might have reminded it of the yesteryears before Yennefer and her dirty habits had moved in.</p>
<p>All the surfaces had been cleared of rubbish and wiped down until the scent of lemon disinfectant had soaked into the counterfeit wood, and the bin bags that she had been accumulating by the door had been taken out before the police knocked on her door because the neighbours thought she had died. Calanthe had even moped up the bin juice that she had bordered off with the bathroom matt to stop it from flooding her living room. That was true love.</p>
<p>Yennefer dragged her sorry arse into the kitchen and cheered up a little when she found a box of fresh pastries in her cupboard and apple juice and fresh fruit in her fridge. Calanthe had stocked up her stores too, though Yennefer noticed she’d also taken the liberty of throwing out her family of six pile of packet pasta and microwaveable egg fried rice and replaced them with things she actually had to cook and prepare. Luckily her Pot Noodles and Naked Noodle Pots had survived the pre-packed food genocide. Yennefer guessed that if they had some trace of vegetable matter in them, then they passed Calanthe’s food standards. She had set the bar low, yet barely anything had survived. Still, Calanthe had successfully demoted herself to third on the list, swapping places with Philippa.</p>
<p>Yennefer piled her plate with a plain croissant that she smothered in butter and a handful of strawberries and filled a mug with the words ‘Who is the best man for a job. A woman’ on the side with apple juice. She took her brunch to the sofa and turned on the TV. She watched ten minutes of ‘Money For Nothing’, a programme about craftsmen turning junk from the scrap yard into clothing or furniture to sell, until she had finished breakfast and then booted up her laptop and hooked it up to the screen.</p>
<p>Two icons popped up on the TV when she went to Netlfix. The one on the right had the name Yennefer underneath and the one on the left Tissaia. Because she had been spending a lot of time at Tissaia’s flat, Yennefer had cancelled her subscription. After getting fed up of losing her place in ‘The Crown’ – Yennefer couldn’t bear to wait for Tissaia to catch up because God did she rarely watch episodes - Tissaia had set her up with a profile. Yennefer kept expecting to log in and find her profile gone or the password changed, but it hadn’t happened yet and she wasn’t in a rush to remind Tissaia that she needed to boot her off her account to complete the bad break-up checklist.</p>
<p>She finished watching the film ‘John Wick’ and got up to go to the bathroom. She had just finished pulling her jogging bottoms back up when someone knocked on the door. Yennefer washed her hands slowly and thoroughly. She wasn’t expecting visitors. They knocked again and Yennefer turned off the tap. She went to her front door and spied through the smudged peak hole. An old woman with small blue eyes and a wrinkled face that put her past her eighties was standing on the other side. She had curly grey hair cropped below her ears and wore a white scarf with blue butterflies over a dull pink cardigan. All she needed were spectacle glasses and sherbet lemons in her large purse and Yennefer would have called the cliché police.</p>
<p>Thinking that she was probably handing out missing cat leaflets Yennefer opened the door a crack. “What do you want?” she asked.</p>
<p>“To talk,” said the old woman.</p>
<p>“I’m not in the mood for company,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>She tried to close the door but the old woman thrust the handle of her black leather handbag into the gap and wedged it open. Yennefer hadn’t realized those things were made of steel.</p>
<p>“I’ll be quick,” said the old woman.</p>
<p>Yennefer pulled the door open and got a proper look at the stranger. She thought there was a familiarity about her. “Who are you?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Mary Lawrence,” said the old woman. “Tissaia’s grandmother.”</p>
<p>Great, Yennefer thought. Her list was expanding. “What do you want?” she asked.</p>
<p>“The same thing as before,” said Mary. “May I come in?”</p>
<p>Yennefer hesitated then opened the door.</p>
<p>Mary came inside and waddled over to the sofa and, unlike Tissaia, she sat down without a fuss. Perhaps OCD wasn’t a family trait. Yennefer stood on the other side of the coffee table and watched Mary rummage through her bag. She didn’t take out any hard sweets although she did pick up something equally as small and tough. A black USB stick which Mary put on the coffee table and pushed towards her. Yennefer picked it up.</p>
<p>“There’s something on there that you need to see,” said Mary.</p>
<p>“What?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>Mary looked between her and the USB stick. “Watch and you’ll know.”</p>
<p>“Just tell me,” said Yennefer. She threw the USB stick onto the coffee table and it bounced off the edge. “I thought you wanted to talk.”</p>
<p>“I do, but you won’t listen,” said Mary. “Better you watch instead.” She bent forward and picked up the USB stick and put it back on the coffee table.</p>
<p>Yennefer left it where it was. “Any other cryptic messages you want to share,” she said, “or can I show you the door?”</p>
<p>“I thought you might like to know that Tissaia has moved back in with her family. She’s not well. Hadn’t left the house in a week until this morning.”</p>
<p>When she’d come to visit her in the hospital, Yennefer thought.</p>
<p>“What about university?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“She’s stopped going,” said Mary. “Hasn’t studied in days.”</p>
<p>Not good. Tissaia was dedicated to her study and in the time that they had been together, Yennefer had only known her to go a day without touching up essays or notes on her laptop. That had been valentines day. The day that Tissaia had promised Yennefer her full attention. What had kept her from doing something that a concussion couldn’t?</p>
<p>Yennefer perched on the edge of the TV cabinet. “What’s wrong with her?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Watch and you’ll see,” Mary said, tapping the USB stick with her fingernail. She closed the clasp on her handbag and saw herself to the door. She opened it and looked at Yennefer. “Tissaia broke your heart for good reason, and she’s paid for it.”</p>
<p>Mary went out the door and left Yennefer alone with her thoughts, and the USB stick. She stared at it for a while, long enough to burn its image onto her memory drive, then picked it up. She went into the bedroom and pulled open the bottom drawer of her dressing cabinet. It was stuffed full of odds and ends like last year’s Halloween costume, wrapping paper, a small, unopened sewing kit she’d brought to mend a hole in her rucksack and a pair of ski gloves for the snow. She pulled out a bundle of green fabric covered in gold glitter held together by black lace and untied it. Tissaia smiled at her from behind the glass cover of the photo frame that Yennefer had brought as a pair before February the fourteenth. Yennefer paused, shook her head and put the USB stick on top of the photo frame then wrapped it back up and shoved it out of sight.</p><hr/>
<p>Yennefer wrote down her order of udon noodles, chicken breast and sweet and sour sauce with a side of duck spring rolls and passed the scrap of paper and the pencil to Triss. It would have been easier for them to pass the laptop around and add what they wanted to the online order, but this was the way they had done it at the when they’d been living together as children and sometimes you have to respect old family traditions, even when they are a pain in the neck, and you weren’t technically a family.</p>
<p>Triss finished writing down her order and held up the piece of paper. “Who wants to order?” She asked.</p>
<p>“I will,” Philippa said. She took the list from Triss and got off the sofa. “I don’t trust any of you imbeciles to get it right.”</p>
<p>“If you weren’t so picky,” said Yennefer, “then that wouldn’t be a problem.”</p>
<p>Philippa put her middle finger up and went into Yennefer’s bedroom to use her laptop. Sabrina the ever impatient clicked play on the TV before Philippa had gone through the door. They were watching the action, comedy and crime film ‘Spy’ with Melissa McCarthy and Jessica Chaffin. It was Saturday evening and Yennefer’s sisters had come over to celebrate her first day working at the Valley, and to burn through her liquor supply. Except for Triss. She’s was too sweet and innocent for even Philippa to dare spoil her with underage drinking. Yennefer hadn’t drunk anything that evening either. She’d been told at her alcohol support group that she shouldn't and other than a shot yesterday she’d kept her promise of staying sober.</p>
<p>After fifteen minutes the credits rolled and Yennefer realized that Philippa hadn’t resurfaced from her room. Grumbling about how she was probably snooping through her laptop Yennefer went to check on her. She did indeed catch Philippa red-handed in the bedroom sitting on the end of her bed with headphones in and a laptop on her legs. She did not, however, come across the Philippa that she had expected to find. Rather than flashing her the pleased smirk of a self-proclaimed arsehole who loved to get caught in the act because if your actions didn’t wind someone up then what was the point, Philippa looked shockingly grim.</p>
<p>“You need to watch this,” she said, inclining her head to the screen.</p>
<p>“Watch what?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>Philippa took her left hand off the keyboard and tapped a painted fingernail against the USB stick plugged into Yennefer’s laptop. That’s when it hit her. Philippa had been watching the video that she’d been eyeing for a week.</p>
<p>“Give that back,” Yennefer shouted.</p>
<p>Philippa held the laptop out of Yennefer’s reach and carried it next-door. She passed it off to Sabrina, her usual accomplice, and told her to connect the laptop to the television. Philippa stood guard while Sabrina worked on airing Yennefer’s dirty laundry and Yennefer gave serious consideration to whether or not she should try and knock Philippa’s pointy nose out from where it didn’t belong. Her last bloodied nose , courtesy of the bar crawl , hadn’t taught her a lesson. Sabrina got the USB stick file up on the TV and Philippa sat down on the sofa between Sabrina and Triss. The opportunity had passed and Yennefer accepted that the situation was beyond salvageable.</p>
<p>Assuming a look of disinterest that likely fooled no one but poor, doe-eyed Triss, Yennefer took her place alone on the armchair and resigned herself to getting this over with. The video was paused one second in on of still of an office with a man sitting behind the desk, and the grainy and dull quality of the footage told Yennefer that it must have come from a personal, indoor CCTV or security camera in the corner. The white, arrow cursor appeared on the screen and Sabrina clicked on the play button</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ohhhhhh. I wonder what it is Yennefers going to see...</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Execute Order 66</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tissaia pushed down the cold lump of dread sitting in her stomach and took a deep breath. She smoothed out her hair, adjusted the sleeves of her blouse and knocked on the door.</p>
<p>“Come in,” said a voice on the other side.</p>
<p>Holding herself at her full five foot nothing height and pushing back her shoulders, Tissaia turned the handle and opened the door. It was cold inside the room, unwelcoming, almost repelling, and Tissaia’s stomach muscles clenched to hold back a shiver that tingled down her back. The two pairs of arched windows on the right side of the room facing out into the water garden were latched open and the wind tickled the white drapes tied with heavy gold rope. Four bookcases built into the wall and framed with delicate floral wallpaper that hadn’t been in production for thirty years stood behind the desk opposite the door. Their shelves were packed with hardbacks heavy enough to bludgeon a man’s thick skull and old bound tomes that might disintegrate if left in direct sunlight.</p>
<p>Between the rows of ancient knowledge was a portrait of Mr Edward Lawrence, the gentleman, and one of Tissaia’s ancestors, who had set their family on the path to fame and fortune when he took a gamble on a piece of land and struck coal. Below him were almost a dozen plaques, framed certificates and other forms of awards that were accredited to the current man of the house, Arthur Lawrence – Tissaia’s father.</p>
<p>He was sitting behind a laptop at a two-metre-wide mahogany desk with an owl spreading its wings and clutching a scroll in its beak carved into the wood at the back. He was a clean-shaven man with slicked-back brown hair with a side part that might have made him look like James Bond if he were more – or at all – athletically rather than academically inclined. His eyes were the same shade of blue as hers and their hair the same tone of brown, but that wasn’t a coincidence. Tissaia had died her blonde strands on his behest because Arthur Lawrence believed that fair hair was unbecoming of a smart young woman and gave the impression of ignorance, unprofessionalism, and sexual bribery – his words not hers.</p>
<p>He was wearing a bespoke dark blue two-piece suit with a black tie and white shirt and had a golden pocket watch that had belonged to Charlie Lawrence, Edward Lawrence’s son, hanging out of his right breast pocket that was purely for show. It was an impractical and expensive piece of junk that Tissaia had never seen her father use to check the time when there weren’t people around for him to impress with the piece.</p>
<p>Tissaia closed the door to her father’s office and stood to attention. He briefly met her eyes then looked back at his laptop and continued at whatever important work he was doing. It was probably something to do with the opening of a new Sushi Platter in Oxenfurt, Tissaia thought, or perhaps her father was considering where to place his next donation and researching who’s favour he could buy next. Tissaia waited where she was and occupied herself with watching the birds bathing in the water garden to try and calm her nerves. She knew her father was doing this on purpose. He wanted to show that he was the man in charge around the house and the display didn’t bode well for her or why she had been summoned to his office the moment she had returned home. Not that a trip here ever felt like a good thing.</p>
<p>Her father closed his laptop and moved it to one side. “Sit down,” he said.</p>
<p>Tissaia walked to the desk and sat in one of the antique wooden chairs with brown leather cushions and carved backrest in front of her father. “You asked for me,” she said.</p>
<p>“Yes,” said her father. “There is a matter that we must discuss.”</p>
<p>He reached behind his desk and picked up a set of keys hanging on a small hook in the wall. There were three keys in total. One for the safe in the master bedroom behind the fake fireplace – paintings were too cliché – one for his office and one for the locked drawer in his desk. That was the key that her father chose. He bent down and Tissaia heard the key turn in the lock and the bottom draw open. Her father sat up in his chair and put a brown envelope the size of a sheet of printing paper onto the desk.</p>
<p>“Open it,” he said, and pushed the envelope towards her.</p>
<p>Tissaia picked it up. The envelope had some weight to it and judging by the creases in the paper it had been handled a few times. She turned it over and noted that the seal had already been broken and that nothing was written on either side. The envelope must have been given to her father in person, Tissaia surmised, and he was passing it onto her. But who would do that? If the contents inside were business-related then they would have been sent electronically, as was her father’s preference. Tissaia tilted the envelope and something landed in her hand.</p>
<p>A thick elastic band, that type that the postman tends to use, was wrapped around a wad of book-sized pictures on proper photographic paper. There had to be around thirty to forty in total, almost as many as she had stored in her box of mementoes. Tissaia took off the plastic band, turned the pile face up and caught two familiar faces staring up at her. They were sitting on the grass in the park near Tissaia’s flat looking like a couple from a life insurance ad or a commercial for customizable cards and gifts. Neither of them was looking at the camera and they can’t have known it was being taken because it was too good to be posed. The woman in the front of the picture had blue eyes and brown hair and had her mouth open in a ‘I can’t believe you just did that’ smile. A pair of arms were wrapped around her chest and their owner, a woman with violet eyes and black hair with a slight wave, was smiling at the other woman and looking pleased with herself.</p>
<p>Tissaia knew those face. She’d seen them both in the bathroom mirror this morning. She’d been there in the park when the picture had been taken. Yennefer had stolen her book, thrown it over her shoulder and pulled her into her arms. She had laughed at her and said that she was jealous the book had her attention and Tissaia had pushed her face away when she’d tried to kiss her and told her to pick up the book before it got wet in the grass. That had happened the moment after the first picture in the stack had been taken, and it had been captured almost frame by frame in the five pictures that followed it.</p>
<p>After the park came the theatre and a few snapshots taken through the windows of Yennefer walking her down the stairs, and then there were pictures of them going hand and hand into The Sushi Platter and coming out of the shopping centre with carrier bags filled with the clothes they had brought for Yennefer’s interview at The Valley. The earliest pictures dated back to the day after they had kissed on the street. Tissaia saw Yennefer getting out of the taxi, going into her building to collect her for their first date.</p>
<p>Their relationship had been captured in thirty-seven photos, and they showed exactly where they had been going, what they had been doing, and where Yennefer lived and worked. Tissaia’s hands shook and she put the pile of photos in her lap. Somebody had been following them she was pretty sure she knew who would stoop to such unsavoury tactics to learn about her private life and affairs.</p>
<p>“Why did you have me followed?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“It had come to my attention that you might have been mixing with the wrong sort of people,” said her father. “I hired two private investigators to verify the rumours, and they reported back with those.”</p>
<p>Vilgefortz, Tissaia thought. It had to be him. Who else could have set somebody on their tail so soon after they had gotten together? Philippa had probably told him what had happened when she’d followed Yennefer out of the bar if he hadn’t seen it first-hand for himself, and he had gone and told her father. Whether it was because he wanted to get in with the Lawrences or get into her knickers, Tissaia didn’t know.</p>
<p>“What do you have to say for yourself?” her father asked.</p>
<p>Tissaia plucked at her jeans. “I had intended to tell you about this father, but I had been waiting for the right time,” she said. “The woman in the photo, her name is Yennefer. She’s my girlfriend.”</p>
<p>“How many people know about this?”</p>
<p>“A few friends,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“Anyone connected with the family?”</p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>“Good.” Her father leaned across his desk and put his hands together. “You need to break up with her.”</p>
<p>Tissaia’s heart stopped. She had to have misheard. “Pardon?” she said.</p>
<p>“You will end your relationship with Miss Vengerberg,” said her father. “It is in the family’s best interests.”</p>
<p>“I don’t understand,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“Your relationship with Mrs Vengerberg reflects badly on the family and our businesses. For the sake of our name and prospects, you must end things with Miss Vengerberg permanently.”</p>
<p>“But why?”</p>
<p>Her father frowned at her. “I just told you why. Listen-“</p>
<p>“Why is my relationship bad for the family?” Tissaia asked. “I-“</p>
<p>“Do not interrupt me,” her father said, standing up and putting his palms flat against the desk. “I will not tolerate this level of unruliness from you. It’s insubordination. As the head of the house and your father, you will show me the respect that I deserve.</p>
<p>Tissaia shrank in her chair and started to scratch her leg. “I’m sorry, father,” she said.</p>
<p>“Remember your place.”</p>
<p>“I will.”</p>
<p>Her father regarded her and then pulled his chair forward and sat down, putting his clasped hand on the desk between them.</p>
<p>Tissaia swallowed and sat up. “Please help me to understand,” she said. “I do not see how my relationship with Yennefer is detrimental to our reputation or endeavours.”</p>
<p>“If I must,” said her father. “As you are aware, the Lawrences are known across the continent as a traditional family and family run business.”</p>
<p>Almost every member of Tissaia’s family, from her cousins twice removed to her mother, worked for or were associated with one of the family’s businesses or partners. She had been sent to study law at Aretuza university by her father so that she could serve the family in legal matters upon graduation. There had never been any question about it. Once a Lawrence always a Lawrence, and that meant contributing to the success of their investments. In many ways, Tissaia had been working for her father since she was ten years old. Behaving like the model daughter and future head of the Lawrence family at parties and events.</p>
<p>“If our customers or associates learn about your relationship with Miss Vengerberg,” said her father, “then it could undermine the image and values that our family and empire are built upon.”</p>
<p>“In what manner?” Tissaia asked. She had an idea, but she wouldn’t accept it. Not without hearing it from him first.</p>
<p>And her father was happy to oblige. “It is not traditional for men and women to have romantic or sexual relationships with someone of the same sex,” he said. “The family cannot accept your homosexual tendencies or fantasies. They are entirely inappropriate for someone of our ilk. You will date a man. That is the way it should be.”</p>
<p>It felt like a cold-blooded punch to the gut. Tissaia had never heard her father or any of her other relatives say anything homophobic and she knew that a few of their associates were openly gay. If they were happy to do business with people from the LGBTQ community then why couldn’t they have one work for them? Why wouldn’t they accept her? How could her family do this to her? Perhaps they weren’t.</p>
<p>“Do the others know about this?” Tissaia asked. “Mother? Grandma?”</p>
<p>“I speak on the behalf of our family,” said her father. “I have our interests at heart.”</p>
<p>In other words, he was acting alone, Tissaia thought. Considering her father wanted to keep this hush-hush the rest of her family probably didn’t know. Not that it mattered. They would agree with what her father said regardless of whether they believed in it. That was how things worked in this family. Her father led and they all followed. She had too, for all her life, but today she had to start thinking for herself.</p>
<p>“I disagree,” said Tissaia. “I believe it would be beneficial for the family to meet my girlfriend. Given time I’m-“</p>
<p>“I- We will do no such thing,” said her father. “That woman is not to set foot on any of our properties nor shall we met her publicly. The family is to have no contact with her and after you have sorted out your affairs, neither will you.”</p>
<p>Tissaia stood up and her chair hit the floor with a crack. Her father flinched. She’d never stood up to him before.</p>
<p>“It is not for you to decide who I can and cannot date,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Her father’s lips curled and he put his hands on the arms of his chair. “It is my right, as your father and as the head of our family,” he said. “My word is final. You will end things with Miss Vengerberg immediately.”</p>
<p>“Or what? I’m not a child anymore. You cannot treat me as such.”</p>
<p>“If you do not do as I say then you will be disowned and disinherited. No daughter of mine, no Lawrence, will engage in such vulgar, and ludicrous hedonistic pursuits.”</p>
<p>“This has nothing to do with pleasure,” Tissaia shouted. “This isn’t some sexual fantasy. I love her.”</p>
<p>“And what about us, your family?” said her father. “Do you not love us too? After all we have done for you are you willing to turn your back on us for this passing fancy?”</p>
<p>“You turned first.”</p>
<p>“Enough of this back and forth,” said her father. “If I cannot convince you to end this foolishness for the family then perhaps you will do it for her instead.”</p>
<p>He reached back into the locked draw and took out a red paper file which he put on the desk.</p>
<p>“More photos?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“Better than photos,” said her father.</p>
<p>Tissaia pulled the folder towards her and took out the pieces of paper inside. She spread them across the desk and leaned forward on her arms to read them. It was a three-page printed PDF file and the first page on the left titled the document’s contents. Jenny Hanson now Yennefer Vengerberg. Tissaia skimmed the first page. Underneath a picture of Yennefer as Tissaia had seen her on the bridge were details about Yennefer’s childhood, who her parents were, where her father was serving time in prison, medical records, and the trouble she’d gotten into with the police for stealing from school. The page over detailed the care home she had been sent to, the schools she had been expelled from and why, warnings for drunk and disorderly behaviour and information about her work at The Lioness and her new job at The Valley. Tissaia moved her index finger down the last page. It had pictures of Yennefer’s flat and contact details for the developers who owned the building beside a list of numbers and figures. At the bottom, there was another name. Istredd Val, and a date for the hearing. It looked like her father was considering getting him a lawyer, a good one, and maybe bribing the jury too. Yennefer wouldn’t get justice, and Istredd would be free to terrorize her again.</p>
<p>A tear dripped off Tissaia’s chin and soaked Yennefer’s – Jenny’s – face. She had already been through enough. It wasn’t fair to put her through this too. Not for her. Yennefer would find someone else. Someone that could keep her safe and look after her. All the things she couldn’t do.</p>
<p>Tissaia picked up her chair and sat down. “What would you have me do?” she asked.</p>
<p>“End things with Miss Vengerberg by tomorrow morning,” said her father. “I don’t care how but you must severe all contact with her. I will know if you two are seeing each other behind my back and to ensure this does not happen again you will move back home so that I might keep a better eye on you. In return, you have my word that I shall leave her be. Do we have a deal?”</p>
<p>He stood up, walked around the desk and held out his hand. Tissaia shook it.</p>
<p>“I agree,” she said.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Look, another pop culture chapter title. We've got 2 chapters (and one short epilogue) left to go! Who is looking forward to the end?</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. Going Dark, Over</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer tapped her torch against the padded bottom of the car boot and the light spluttered its last and died. Cursing, Yennefer felt about in the dark for her phone and pulled it out of her pocket. She turned on the torch and checked how much battery she had left. Thirty percent. More than enough to last her. Yennefer rolled onto her side and put her phone face down next to her and let the light shine up onto the hard-plastic trunk cover and parcel shelf. To distract herself from the discomfort that comes from being crammed into the boot of a non-family or human smuggler friendly car, Yennefer went over ‘the grand plan to sneak into the Lawrence empire, rescue Princess Tissaia Lawrence, and sweep of her of feet’ or ‘A Disney Romance’ for short.</p>
<p>After learning the truth about what had happened the day after valentines, Yennefer had rung Calanthe to ask for Tissaia’s home address. She could have called her, but that didn’t have the romantic or dashing flair that Yennefer was going for. If she wanted to win Tissaia back she had to go all out, and take the risk of setting herself up for a huge fall if things didn’t go to plan. But you know what they say – you can’t get your girlfriend back without breaking a few laws. Which is why she was currently hiding the boot of Calanthe and Eist’s car.</p>
<p>As luck would have it, the night that Yennefer had watched the CCTV footage and concocted her plans of grandeur happened to be the same night that Tissaia’s family were holding a fancy shindig or soirée at the Lawrence estate. Queue her ticket in. Her dirty ticket because Calanthe had thrown her invitation to the event in the bin when it had been posted through her door. Poor Eist had gone fishing through a weeks’ worth of rubbish to find it while Calanthe and Yennefer had plotted over the phone. On paper, the plan was simple. Calanthe and Eist would smuggle her through the gate and Yennefer would get into the house using the servants’ entrance. Once inside, Yennefer would make her way to the wine cellar and wait for Calanthe to deliver Tissaia to her. Then she would do everything she could short of kidnapping to take Tissaia away and drive – hopefully in the front seat of Tissaia’s car and not elsewhere – into the night. It was a perfect three-point plan worthy of an autobiography film adaption if Yennefer’s career in the fashion world ever kicked off.</p>
<p>Yennefer’s phone buzzed and she picked it up.</p>
<p>“We’re approaching the main gate,” said Calanthe. “Time to go dark. Over.”</p>
<p>“You don’t need to say that,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“Spoilsport. Over.”</p>
<p>Yennefer hung up and steeled herself for the part of the rescue that she had been dreading the most. And no, she wasn’t exaggerating. Talking to Tissaia was in second place. After taking a deep breath and looking around one last time, Yennefer turned off her phone. Without her torch the car boot was pitch black and, in combination with the enclosed space, Yennefer found it hard to breathe. She jammed her hands under her armpits, closed her eyes, and tried to think about what type of formal dress Tissaia might be wearing when she saw her. Would it be long-sleeved or short? One colour or multi-coloured? Tight or flowing?</p>
<p>The car started to slow down and then came to a stop. Yennefer thought she heard voices, a man and a woman’s, briefly engage in conversation before the car moved again. She felt the car turn and circle around while Calanthe and Eist looked for a parking spot that was sheltered and out of the way. The car stopped and Yennefer waited to be let out. Her hands were itching and she bit her bottom lip to resist the temptation to start screaming to be let out or to bang around for the latch that let you open the boot from the inside. In the end, Yennefer settled for turning her phone back on and using the light from the screen to settle her nerves. She waited around for five minutes before the lock clicked and Eist opened the boot.</p>
<p>“You need to hurry,” he said, pulling her out.</p>
<p>“Which way is it,” Yennefer asked. She was feeling a little disorientated.</p>
<p>Calanthe grabbed Yennefer by the shoulders and turned her towards the left side of the house. “If it’s locked the key will in the hanging plant pot,” she said and pushed Yennefer forwards. “Go.”</p>
<p>Yennefer ran along the left side of the house until she was out of sight of the arriving guests and took a moment to admire Tissaia’s gilded cage.</p>
<p>It had been more than two hundred years since the Lawrence estate had been built in the rural outskirts of Gors Velen, and it had been in the family for four generations after Tissaia’s great, great grandfather had brought it for half its worth from man who had claimed days prior that nothing could persuade him to sell his ancestral home. The lower part of the mansion was made with colourful but not garish copper bricks and the startingly white upper level punctuated by strips of black wood showed that the house was too well maintained to belong to a national heritage charity. The bottom floor was a half-basement because the original architect – being the enlightened man that he was – had decided that it would be generous and good of him to let the mansion’s servants see the goings-on of the outside world, and certainly not because the windows helped save on candles. Formal beds paved the way to the front of the house and outside its ten-foot stone walls the mansion and its land were surrounded by woodland.</p>
<p>Yennefer found a set of stone steps leading down to a black door and used it to get inside the half-basement. She walked along the corridor took a right then a left two doors down and pushed open a heavy wooden door with iron bolts. The wine cellar had a tiled cream floor and grey walls that she could just make out through a few gaps in the otherwise stockpiled for Armageddon wine racks. They completely covered the three walls around the door from the waist up and the space underneath the racks was filled with locked draws that Yennefer had to guess held extremely rare or unique bottles that the servants could not be trusted with. There was a glass-topped table in the middle of the room and one of the racks housed a few small glasses that were probably used for tasting.</p>
<p>This morning, being surrounded by hundreds of the world’s best bottles of the drink of the Gods would have been Yennefer’s wet and very deadly dream. Now, she wasn’t tempted at all. Yennefer jumped up onto the table and cradled her phone in her lap. Calanthe had said she would let her know when she was on her way with Tissaia. She had no notion of how long that might take or whether Tissaia would be easy or hard to find. The waiting game would be frustrating, but Yennefer doubted she would be able to get near Tissaia if she went running wildly through the mansion in her skinny jeans and tank top. Perhaps she should have taken more time to prepare and dressed up, then she might have stood a chance of passing as a guest. If it came to it, and Calanthe couldn’t get Tissaia to come down, Yennefer could always wait till the house had gone to sleep and then sneak into Tissaia’s room, but that was a last resort. The gesture was less romantic and rather more stalker.</p>
<p>Yennefer sat inside the wine cellar undisturbed for an hour before she got a text from Calanthe that said she was moving in, over. When a second text quickly followed the first Yennefer wasn’t feeling hopeful. Calanthe reported that her mission had been a failure. They decided to regroup in the wine cellar.</p>
<p>“What went wrong?” Yennefer asked when Eist closed the door.</p>
<p>“We couldn’t get near her,” said Calanthe. “Her family must be under orders not to let anyone that hasn’t got her father’s approval talk to her.”</p>
<p>“Damn it,” said Yennefer. She hopped off the table and started pacing. “What now?”</p>
<p>“You could slip a letter under her door,” said Eist. “That’s still fairly romantic.”</p>
<p>“I didn’t spend half an hour sitting in the boot of your car to give her something I could have sent in the post,” said Yennefer. “Besides, the point of coming here was because I need to see her.”</p>
<p>Eist scratched his stumbled chin. “Then use the letter to invite her for a moonlight stroll around the lake,” he said.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked at him. “What lake?” she asked.</p>
<p>“The one behind the house,” said Eist.</p>
<p>“You mean a pond, right?”</p>
<p>“No, definitely a lake. You can’t sail on a pond.”</p>
<p>“As things are,” said Calanthe, “I don’t think Tissaia is going to be sneaking out of the house at night.”</p>
<p>“Then how am I going to get her attention?” said Yennefer. “Steal a boat?”</p>
<p>Calanthe tensed. “Nobody is getting on any boats,” she said suddenly.</p>
<p>Yennefer ducked her head. That had been a little tactless.</p>
<p>“We could come back tomorrow,” said Eist.</p>
<p>“They might not less us in,” said Calanthe. “What about catching her at university?”</p>
<p>“Her grandmother said she’s stopped going,” said Yennefer. “And her visit to the hospital was the first time she’d left the house in days.”</p>
<p>“Then we’ll put you back in the hospital,” Calanthe said and clapped Yennefer on the back. “It doesn’t have to be anything serious. How do you feel about dislocating your arm?”</p>
<p>“Not going to happen,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“How about a finger? You have spare.”</p>
<p>“Try it and I might just decide that the boat isn’t such a bad idea.”</p>
<p>Calanthe threw her hands up. “It was just a suggestion,” she said.</p>
<p>“Fuck your suggestions,” said Yennefer. “I’m going to do what I should have done in the first place.”</p>
<p>“And what’s that?” Eist asked.</p>
<p>Yennefer walked past them and stood by the door. “I’m going to find Tissaia myself.”</p>
<p>The smugglers stared at her. Then, Calanthe clapped her hands together.</p>
<p>“So, let’s talk about the boat,” she said.</p>
<hr/>
<p>After Calanthe and Eist gave up their attempts to talk her down, they resigned themselves to being her eyes and ear, and her guide too because whoever had designed the servant corridors under the main house hadn’t wanted anyone without a map to escape. They had a few near misses with some of the waiters returning to the depths of the estate to retrieve more food and chilled wine and arrived in a section of the half-basement where three large wooden panels with arched tops broke up the otherwise white wall. Calanthe ran her hand along the half posts between and around each panel.</p>
<p>“Where are you, you little bugger,” she said. “Aha.” The wooden panel in the middle popped open and Calanthe pushed it back to reveal a hidden passage. “This should take us to the dining hall.”</p>
<p>“How do you know about the secret passages?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“Because Tissaia and Pavetta used to hide in them as kids,” said Calanthe. “Dirty little cheats.”</p>
<p>Yennefer followed Calanthe into the narrow stone passage with Eist bringing up the rear. While the walls and floor were bare the passage had been maintained, suggesting that the Lawrence’s still subscribed to the idea that it was best to keep the servants out of. The hanging lightbulbs all shone brightly and were mostly free of dust, but by no means was the corridor asthmatic friendly. They approached the end of the corridor and Calanthe took a sharp right around the corner then stopped.</p>
<p>“Ah shit,” she said.</p>
<p>“What is it?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“What are you doing in here?” said another voice.</p>
<p>Yennefer poked her head over Calanthe’s shoulder and saw an elderly gentleman fitted out in butler penguin attire standing at the top of the stairs with an empty silver tray tucked under his arm.</p>
<p>“Taking a short cut,” said Calanthe. “If you would be a good chap and stand aside.”</p>
<p>“Gladly, Mrs Riannon,” said the waiter. “But please refrain from using the servant passages in the future.”</p>
<p>“Of course,” said Calanthe.</p>
<p>The waiter stood to the side and they started up the stairs. When Calanthe walked past him at the top his eyes met Yennefer’s and he squinted at her.</p>
<p>“Miss Vengerberg, I presume,” he said, and stepped to block the passageway.</p>
<p>“How do you know how I am?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“The staff were presented with your picture a few weeks ago,” said the waiter. “We have been instructed to alert security and Mr Lawrence should we see you near the estate. I’m going to have to ask you to turn back.”</p>
<p>Yennefer climbed up to the top step. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said.</p>
<p>“I can’t let you through,” said the waiter.</p>
<p>“Why not?” Eist asked. “It would be easier for you to get security by going back out into the dining hall. Let us pass.”</p>
<p>“I cannot,” said the waiter.</p>
<p>“You’re supposed to report me,” said Yennefer, “not stop me. Move.”</p>
<p>“Under no circumstances are the staff permitted to allow you access to Miss Tissaia,” said the waiter. “You must turn around.”</p>
<p>“What?” said Yennefer. “Why not?”</p>
<p>The waiter stood a little straighter. “We have been told that you intend to do her harm.”</p>
<p>That hit Yennefer like a punch in the gut. She wasn’t surprised that the Lawrences had painted her as a villain to help ward off suspicion, but for them to make her out like her father – it made her feel sick. And Calanthe wasn’t happy about it either.</p>
<p>“That dirty, fucking bastard,” she shouted, slamming the tip of her heel into the floor. “He’s lying. Does she look armed and dangerous to you?”</p>
<p>“That is not for me to decide,” said the waiter. “I have my orders and I shall follow them.”</p>
<p>“And what does Tissaia want?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>The question caught him off guard, and Yennefer knew that she had him.</p>
<p>The waiter cleared his throat. “Pardon?” he asked</p>
<p>“Is this what Tissaia wants?” said Yennefer. “Did she ask you to keep me away?”</p>
<p>“The order came from her father.”</p>
<p>“And would you put it past Mr Lawrence to interfere in his daughter’s affairs?”</p>
<p>The waiter looked away and tapped his right heel against the floor three times.</p>
<p>“Would you?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>The waiter considered her for a moment. “I would not,” he said.</p>
<p>“Do you believe that Calanthe would smuggle me in if I wanted to hurt Tissaia?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“Never,” said the waiter.</p>
<p>“Then let me past. I want to help her.”</p>
<p>The waiter tapped his heel again and looked over his shoulder. “You never saw me,” he said, and stepped aside.</p>
<p>Yennefer walked past him before he could change his mind. After a few more paces they came to the end of the corridor and Calanthe turned a handle in the wall and pulled open the door. They came out into a small alcove to the right of open double doors that led into the dining hall. Nobody appeared to notice them come out. They were either enjoying their wine or had become accustomed to ignoring the comings and goings of servants.</p>
<p>“You two stay here,” said Calanthe. “I’ll go and find Tissaia.”</p>
<p>Yennefer hid behind Eist while Calanthe stepped out from the alcove, looked around, and took a right. She came back after a few minutes.</p>
<p>“Tissaia is in the great hall,” said Calanthe. “Just over there.” She pointed around the corner. “But she’s on the move.”</p>
<p>“Then what are we waiting for,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“Wait,” Calanthe shouted, but Yennefer had already run around Eist and into the room Calanthe had gestured at.</p>
<p>While the Lawrence’s great hall wasn’t anything like the one she’d seen in ‘Harry Potter’ it was still pretty damn fancy. The main doors to the house opened into a large room bigger than any school hall she’d seen and with far more refined and serious faces hanging from the wall in pictures and portraits. It had a high, two-story ceiling and a set of stone stairs at the back that went up to the overhanging balcony and the second floor. Various room, including the dining hall that she had just come from, adjoined the great hall and a choir of bespoke suit-wearing gentleman with handkerchiefs and bow ties and their bejewelled and painted ladies were congregated there, and from time to time someone would drift in from another room whenever someone left a vacancy.</p>
<p>Yennefer stood under a stone archway that separated the great hall from the small corridor into the dining hall and looked around for Tissaia. Due to her below average even when in heels stature, Yennefer had trouble seeing her in the crowd, and without knowing what her target was wearing the game was that bit harder than ‘Where’s Wally’ – unless he was coloured in because one of the kids in the home liked the make children cry, no prizes for guessing who.</p>
<p>“Who is that funny girl?” a woman’s voice asked in a stage whisper behind her.</p>
<p>“I don’t know,” came a man’s voice. He wasn’t even trying to be subtle. “But I know she certainly doesn’t belong here.”</p>
<p>“Good heavens no,” said the first voice.</p>
<p>“Would you two shut up,” Yennefer shouted, looking behind her. “I’m trying to concentrate.”</p>
<p>“How rude,” said the man. He was short, plump and had a constipated expression that gave substance to the old wives’ tale ‘if the wind changes your face will stick like that’.</p>
<p>“Maybe we should get security, darling,” said the woman. She was tall, thin as a fiddle and had large nostrils that Yennefer got a good look up because of how high she held her nose in the air.</p>
<p>Yennefer was reminded sharply of Mr and Mrs Dursley.</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Calanthe said. “She’s with us.”</p>
<p>The muggles took one look at Calanthe and shuffled into the next room. Yennefer smiled at Calanthe and then nodded towards the great hall.</p>
<p>“Where did you see her?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Heading towards the stairs,” said Calanthe. She looked over Yennefer’s shoulder and pointed. “There.”</p>
<p>Calanthe had to have incredibly good eyes because Tissaia was at the end of the room standing by the stairs and blocked from sight by a set of shoulders from the neck up. She was smiling and laughing a little out of time with the people surrounding her and seemed smaller and more on edge in the crowd than Yennefer had seen before. Either those around her didn’t notice or simply didn’t care about Tissaia’s discomfort because they hardly played Tissaia any mind or gave her space to breath, and Yennefer noted that most of them shared Tissaia’s blue eyes. It had to be her family, she thought.</p>
<p>A squat and broad-shouldered man with a shiny, balding head stepped to the side and offered Yennefer a complete view of her princess. Of all the things Yennefer had pictured her wearing tonight, she hadn’t thought for a moment that she would choose that dress. She looked just as perfect – better than perfect - as the first time Yennefer had seen her try it on. That had been the evening that she had realized she was truly head over heels. Tissaia might have left her, but she hadn’t moved on. Why else would she be wearing the dress that she had made for her?</p>
<p>Calanthe squeezed Yennefer’s shoulder. “Let’s go get your girl,” she said.</p>
<p>“Let’s,” said Yennefer.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>When you started reading this fic, did you picture an ending as absurd as this?</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Wednesday Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. Freedom to Love</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Having witnessed how Calanthe repelled the other guests, Yennefer let her clear a path through the jungle. They curved towards the stairs and got within ten feet of the princess before they were cornered by her royal guard. Yennefer ducked behind Calanthe and watched for an opening.</p>
<p>“Miss Tissaia cannot see you right now,” said a man with a sticky looking handlebar moustache and a gaunt face. “Come back later.”</p>
<p>“I believe that should be for her to decide, don’t you?” said Calanthe.</p>
<p>“I won’t ask you again,” said Mr Moustache.</p>
<p>“Good,” said Calanthe. “I don’t like the sound of your voice.”</p>
<p>She lunged forwards and rammed her shoulder into the man’s chest above his armpit. He staggered backwards and Calanthe pushed forwards. Another man with flushed cheeks and no neck stepped up to take his fallen comrade’s place and held Calanthe back by the shoulders. While he was distracted Yennefer moved around Calanthe and ran at the gap no neck had left in Tissaia’s protective circle. She ducked her head to try and make herself less noticeable and missed the fist that came at her from behind an old woman’s Cinderella skirt. It connected with her stomach and knocked the wind out of her. Spluttering, Yennefer fell down. She slipped onto her knees and sank forwards and caught herself with her hands.</p>
<p>Yennefer rubbed the tears out of her eyes and looked up. Vilgefortz was standing over her looking mighty pleased with himself. Some chivalries knight he is, Yennefer thought.</p>
<p>Vilgefortz tutted and wagged a finger in her face. “I warned you about bothering her,” he said.</p>
<p>“You slimy bastard,” Yennefer shouted. Of course, he was in on it. Tissaia’s parents were probably trying to pawn her off onto him for the sake of their kingdom. Yennefer jumped at Vilgefortz, but something caught her mid-air before she could give him the black eye she’d always wanted to. She looked behind her and saw two young men – Tissaia’s cousins maybe – holding her arms.</p>
<p>“Take her outside,” said Vilgefortz. “The police can deal with her.”</p>
<p>The two men holding Yennefer started to drag her backwards. Over Vilgefortz’s shoulder, Yennefer saw Tissaia being walked upstairs by another woman. They were taking her away.</p>
<p>“Tissaia,” Yennefer shouted. “Tissaia.”</p>
<p>At the landing at the top of the stairs, her princess turned around and looked down at her from above.</p>
<p>Tissaia gasped. “Yennefer,” she said, and started back down the stairs. Two men rushed up to meet her and barred her way.</p>
<p>“Leave her alone,” Yennefer shouted.</p>
<p>She kicked at the ankle of the man on her left and he grunted and let her go. Using the other guard's grip on her arm Yennefer pulled herself around and kneed him hard as she could in the groin. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and he slid down to his knees. Yennefer ducked under the arms of non-neck and he collided with the Go Compare man. Tissaia was trapped on the stairs with the two men who had ambushed her and they were trying to push her upstairs while the woman tugged on her arm.</p>
<p>Tissaia’s guardian was middle-aged with small green eyes and ironed straight brown hair that fell just short of touching her bony shoulders. Her dress was black, long and modest in every sense of the word, but her humility was offset by the set of diamonds that she was flaunting about her and neck. When Tissaia pulled her arm free from her grip she wrinkled her nose, straightened up and adjusted the sleeves of her dress. Yennefer would bet good money that she was Tissaia’s mother, and she seemed about as useful to Tissaia as her own mother had been whenever her father mistreated her.</p>
<p>Yennefer ran up the stairs to meet her and almost had her head pulled clean off her shoulders. These people liked to play dirty. She lost her balance, tripped, and fell onto her back and narrowly avoid breaking her hipbone on the bottom step.</p>
<p>A clean-shaven man with clipped brown hair and cold blue eyes stepped into her field of vision. Yennefer had seen his face before on her television screen. It was Arthur Lawrence. Head of the Lawrence family, Gors Velen’s closest thing to a mafia boss, and Tissaia’s father. He looked like an even bigger prick in person.</p>
<p>Yennefer sat up and saw Tissaia push her way between the two men holding her on the stairs. When she passed her father, he grabbed her upper arm and pulled her towards him. Yennefer bristled. He didn’t trust that man with her.</p>
<p>“I told you to go to your room,” Arthur said under his breath. “Do as you are told.”</p>
<p>Tissaia pulled her arm free and stepped back. “She’s hurt,” she said and knelt beside Yennefer. “Are you alright?”</p>
<p>“I’m fine,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“I don’t believe you,” said Tissaia. She looked Yennefer over with and tilted her head with fingers placed lightly on her chin.</p>
<p>Yennefer bit her lip to stop any embarrassing sounds from slipping out. She lifted a hand to Tissaia’s face and skimmed her knuckles over her jaw. Tissaia eyes fluttered shut for a moment and then she pulled her face away. She held Yennefer’s wrist and lowered her hand.</p>
<p>“You shouldn’t be here,” Tissaia whispered.</p>
<p>“Neither should you,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>Tissaia let go of Yennefer’s arms and looked her in the eye. She had no tears to shed. She had accepted her fate. “You need to go. Please,” she said and stood up.</p>
<p>Yennefer got up with her and grabbed the right side of the sash around her waist. Praying that it had been knotted tight – because boy who she look stupid if it came loose - Yennefer tugged Tissaia towards her. She caught her by the waist when she stumbled and let her hands frame Tissaia’s hip. The audience around them gasped liked they were watching a pantomime, and a few covered their eyes and one woman in the front row fainted. Yennefer guessed that they thought she was the villain of the play and that made this a hostage situation, but Tissaia didn’t look in peril –just a little surprised,</p>
<p>“I came here to get you,” said Yennefer, “and I don’t want to leave without you.”</p>
<p>“Yen…” said Tissaia. She pulled her arms out from where they were trapped between their bodies and trailed them up Yennefer’s lower back. “I-“</p>
<p>“Get your hands off her,” Arthur shouted as he stepped into the small clearing that had formed around them. You don’t go getting involved in the Lawrences’ private affairs. You watch instead and soak up all the juicy details. “You’re not taking my daughter anywhere. If you will not release her and depart of your own accord, then I will gladly have you taken away in handcuffs.”</p>
<p>“Don’t you dare threaten me,” said Yennefer. “Not after what you’ve done.” If she hadn’t been so worried about someone snatching Tissaia if she let her go, Yennefer would have liked to go up and jab her finger into the man’s puffed up chest. Maybe if she pricked him with her fingernail, all the hot air would come out his nose.</p>
<p>Arthur straightened and tugged on the notch label of his suit jacket. He couldn’t have been more Spy villain if he’d tried. “Trying to protect my family is no crime,” he said.</p>
<p>“You’re not trying to protect anyone,” Yennefer shouted. “You just want them under your thumb.”</p>
<p>Arthur scoffed. “Do not believe any of her lies,” he said to the room. “She is deluded and has lured my poor daughter with her poisoned tongue. Trust me when I say-”</p>
<p>Yennefer laughed. “Trust,” she said. “Why should they trust you when you threatened and blackmail your daughter to get her to play your game.”</p>
<p>“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Arthur said with a straight-face, but he’d flinched and probably knew she’d seen it.</p>
<p>“Save it,” said Yennefer. “I saw the CCTV footage from your office, I know you threatened and blackmailed her into breaking up with me. You spineless prick.”</p>
<p>“She’s a madwoman,” said Arthur, and a few people in the crowd mumbled in agreement. “Tissaia, come here at once.” He beckoned her over. “She’s dangerous.”</p>
<p>“That’s not true,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Arthur’s lips curled. “Don’t talk back to me,” he said, jabbing a finger in Tissaia’s direction. “Come here now. Remember what we agreed to.”</p>
<p>Tissaia tensed under Yennefer’s arm and lowered her head. She took a step back and dug her fingernails into the skin on her right arm. Her arms slipped off Yennefer’s back and waist and she turned towards her father.</p>
<p>“I know what he said to you Tiss,” said Yennefer. “I know that you broke up with me to protect me, but I don’t want protecting. I want you.”</p>
<p>“You could find someone else,” said Tissaia. “Someone better.”</p>
<p>“I don’t want anyone else, and there isn’t anymore more perfect for me than you.” Yennefer stepped around Tissaia and stood in front of her. She lowered her hand from her arm and held her shoulders. “The night you saved my life five years ago I’d suffered the worst beating from my father I’d ever had. Do you know why he did it?”</p>
<p>“Tell me,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“Because he saw me kiss a girl from class outside the Fish and Chip shop,” said Yennefer. “After that beating in the park, I was too terrified to be with the people I wanted to love. I settled for Istredd instead, and I would still be with him if it weren’t for you. You stood up for me and forgave me when I made mistakes. You helped me be brave and to be who I am. Now, let me help you.”</p>
<p>“But what about your job,” said Tissaia, “your house, what if-”</p>
<p>“None of the matters,” said Yennefer. “I just need you.” She’d be happy living out of a cardboard box with two square meals of jam on toast a day so long as she had Tissaia to share it with.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” said Tissaia, “that I hurt you. Will you give me a second chance?”</p>
<p>Yennefer smiled. “I think that’s only fair. You’ve given me my fair share.” She leant in and pressed her forehead against Tissaia’s. “I love you.”</p>
<p>“I love you too,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>She wound her hand around the back of Yennefer’s neck and brought their lips together. It was like they were kissing for the first time. Nervous and uncertain, needy and a little bit messy, but God did it feel right. Tissaia was the one for her. She had been since the moment they’d met. When she’d given her another chance a life. Yennefer deepened the kiss and Tissaia responded by hooking her fingers through the loops on her trousers and tugging her forwards. To her right, Yennefer thought she heard Calanthe cheer.</p>
<p>“What do you think you’re doing?” Arthur shouted.</p>
<p>Yennefer surfaced for air and saw Arthur Lawrence boring down on them like a peacock on steroids. He reached out to grab Tissaia’s arm and Yennefer caught his wrist. She straightened his arm till it locked and used it to push him away. He staggered back with all the grace God gave a tree stump and tripped over his feet, landing on his arse. No one moved to help him up.</p>
<p>Tissaia looked down her nose at her father. “What I want to do,” she said. “I’m putting myself first for a change. My whole life you’ve made choices for me. What school I went to, where I would spend the summer holidays, what I would study at university, and then you tried to control who I’m allowed to date. I’ve had enough. I’m making my own choice,” she stroked Yennefer’s cheek, “and I choose her.”</p>
<p>“This is madness,” said Arthur. He scrambled to his feet and looked around the room. “Can’t you see how that- that she-devil-“ he gestured to Yennefer, who rather liked the insult, “-has got inside my daughter’s head. I would never-“</p>
<p>“And what does my word count for?” said a woman’s voice.</p>
<p>Yennefer looked behind her and saw Mary, Tissaia’s grandmother, coming down the stairs. The plot thickens.</p>
<p>Arthur’s jaw dropped like a sack of coins. “M- Mother,” he stammered.</p>
<p>“You can trust these two young ladies,” said Mary. “I have seen the evidence.”</p>
<p>“You have,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“Who do you think passed the CCTV footage to Miss Vengerberg?” said Mary.</p>
<p>Arthur blanched. Betrayed by his mother and daughter in one evening, that had to sting, Yennefer thought. Oh, how that pleased her.</p>
<p>Mary stepped onto the floor and put her hand on Tissaia’s shoulder. “It’s time to go,” she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer took Tissaia by the arm and followed Mary to the front door. Calanthe and Eist broke off from the crowd and stood either side of them as their honour guard.</p>
<p>Outside, Mary signalled for her chauffeur to bring the car around and then held Yennefer and Tissaia’s hands. “I want you two to know that I will stand by you and support you regardless of how the rest of the family react,” she said.</p>
<p>“But then they might disown you too,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry about me, child,” said Mary. “Here, I have something for you.” Mary reached behind her neck and unclasped her silver locket. She took it off and put it in Tissaia’s hand. “This was given to me fifty years ago by the true love of my life. I want you to have it.” Mary put her fingers on either side of the locket and opened it. There were two pictures inside. One Yennefer recognized as Tissaia’s late grandfather and the other was a young woman in her early to mid-twenties.</p>
<p>“Who is she?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>Mary tapped the locket. “The one who gave this to me,” she said.</p>
<p>Yennefer had to think about that – in her defence, it had been a very long night – but she was spared from overworking her brain by Tissaia.</p>
<p>“She was your lover,” she said.</p>
<p>“Her name was Sarah,” said Mary. “She loved to dance. We shared our first kiss behind the town hall where they used to teach us ballroom dancing.”</p>
<p>A small black limo pulled up by the front door and a male chauffeur and an old woman got out of the car. Mary held up her hand and they waited where they were. Yennefer nearly missed it, but a flicker of recognition made her look back. The last time she had seen those two faces had been outside the hospital the morning after Tissaia’s accident. Yennefer wondered if Mrs Grant hated her as much at the last time they had met. At least the pot-bellied chauffer smiled at her when she caught his eye.</p>
<p>“What happened to her?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“She had to marry a suitable husband, just as I did,” said Mary. “I learned to love your grandfather, Tissaia, and I had a happy life with him, but it always felt like it was missing something. It was always unfulfilled. I would have been happier with Sarah if only I’d dared.” Mary tucked a piece of hair behind Tissaia’s ear and ghosted her fingers over her cheekbone. “Learn from my mistake, be with who you are meant to be with.”</p>
<p>“I will,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Mary kissed Tissaia’s forehead and nodded to Yennefer.</p>
<p>Yennefer took the locket from Tissaia’s hand and fastened it around her neck. “It suits you,” she said. “You look stunning.”</p>
<p>“Like a model?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“Like an angel,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>They kissed under the stars and then – to really sell this Disney ending – Yennefer picked Tissaia up bridal style and took her to the car. Yennefer and Tissaia got in after Mrs Grant and Mary and sat opposite them. The chauffeur closed the door and climbed into the front seat. He drove off and through the iron gates after Calanthe had opened the champagne and poured herself a glass. She had left Eist behind to take their car back. He would have to celebrate the reunion later.</p>
<p>“I have something else for you, Tissaia,” said Mary.</p>
<p>Mrs Grant handed Mary a wooden box roughly the size of a shoebox but twice as deep and passed it to Tissaia. Three little birds chasing each other’s tail feathers in a circle were carved into a wooden lid that was held closed by a silver latch. Yennefer had seen the box once before in Tissaia’s flat when she had been putting away recently printed photos a few days before valentines. Tissaia had explained that her grandmother, Mary, had given her the handcrafted box as a present the day before she went to boarding school to store memories in. The birds on the lids were called skylarks and Mary had chosen that bird because she and Tissaia had nursed one back to health one summer holiday. Tissaia had said that the bird took a shine to her and use to perch on her shoulders.</p>
<p>Tissaia ran her fingers lovingly over the little birds. “My keepsakes,” she said. “I thought I’d lost them.”</p>
<p>“Mrs Grant overheard you and your father arguing,” said Mary. “When she saw him come out of your room with the box she followed him and took it out of the trash. Then, she gave it to me for safekeeping.”</p>
<p>“Why did he throw it out?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>“Because he didn’t want me to have anything that tied me to you,” said Tissaia. “He made me delete the photos I had of you and installed something onto my phone and laptop to check that I wasn’t in contact with you. I tried to hid my box but he went through my things and found it. I begged him not to throw it out, but he did it anyway.”</p>
<p>“What a fucking bastard,” said Calanthe. Mrs Grant scowled at her. “Begging my bleeding language, miss.”</p>
<p>Tissaia pulled up the lid and rummaged through the contents. Inside were the two glass frames with their pictures housed inside that Yennefer had almost smashed, the brown bear she had given Tissaia for valentines, and a handful of printed photos, including the group photo they had taken at the Sushi Platter and their Christmas meal at the flat.</p>
<p>“Everything is here,” said Tissaia. She held the fish frame in her hands and smiled. “Thank you, Mrs Grant.”</p>
<p>“I had my suspicions that your father had been up to something when you moved back into the house and locked yourself away,” said Mrs Grant. “Most of the staff did, but we never imagined he would do something so dastardly. I was shocked when Mr Matthews-“</p>
<p>“One of the groundskeepers,” Tissaia whispered in Yennefer’s ear.</p>
<p>“-told me he had found an envelope of pictures of you and Miss Vengerberg in one of the flowerbeds near the waste bins,” said Mrs Grant. “That’s when I decided to uncover what had happened between you and Mr Lawrence in his office.”</p>
<p>“You mean you watched the CCTV footage and snooped on their conversation,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“Don’t be crude,” said Mrs Grant. “I was doing surveillance.”</p>
<p>“Whatever you want to call it,” said Tissaia, “thank you. I’m not sure what would have happened if you hadn’t intervened.”</p>
<p>“What your father did was foul,” said Mrs Grant. “You can be sure that I will be handing in my resignation first thing tomorrow, and I imagine many of my colleagues will follow suit. You were always popular among the staff, Miss Lawrence.”</p>
<p>“I’m not a Lawrence anymore,” said Tissaia. “I’ll be needing a new surname.”</p>
<p>“How about Vengerberg?” Yennefer asked.</p>
<p>Tissaia raised an eyebrow at her. “I don’t see any ring.”</p>
<p>“That could be arranged. What do you say?”</p>
<p>“That we ought to try living together first.”</p>
<p>She leant forwards and kissed Tissaia’s cheek. “Is that an invitation?” she asked.</p>
<p>Tissaia hummed. “My, aren’t you eager,” she said.</p>
<p>“We do have a lot of lost time to catch up on,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“Then I presume you’ll be staying over tonight,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer put an arm around Tissaia’s shoulder. “Tonight, tomorrow, the day after next,” she said. “You’re stuck with me. I’m not going anywhere.”</p>
<p>“I think I can learn to live with that,” said Tissaia.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry this chapter is a little rushed and expositional (I experimented with it for a while but I couldn't find anything that worked better), but I hoped you enjoyed it.</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
<p>Until Saturday for the epilogue Xx</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0026"><h2>26. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yennefer took the last cardboard box out of the hired minivan and carried it inside. She went down the hallway and into the kitchen and left it on the counter with the rest of their kitchen supplies. Besides the boxes, there was nothing else in the kitchen or the dining room connected to it. None of the furniture in Tissaia’s flat had belonged to her and they’d given all Yennefer’s crappy stuff away to friends and charity shops when she’d sold her flat. Yennefer pushed the box against the wall and went back outside. Tissaia had finished putting the car seats back up and had grabbed their bags from the front seat. She passed them to Yennefer who threw them through the door and around the corner and bent down. She put her left arm behind the back of Tissaia’s knees, put her right around her lower back, and swept the other woman off her feet.</p>
<p>Tissaia gasped. “What do you think you’re doing?” she said.</p>
<p>“Isn’t it tradition to carry a partner into your new home?” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“You’re thinking of newlyweds,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>“My bad.” Yennefer stepped over the threshold and Tissaia wrapped her arms around her neck.</p>
<p>After gate-crashing the Lawrence family’s party seven months ago – and trespassing, breaking in, engaging in several physical altercations with various members of the family and, according to one newspaper, kidnapping the head of the family’s daughter – Yennefer had mostly been living out of Tissaia’s flat. At the end of March, a few weeks after they had gotten back together, Tissaia had told Yennefer that she might as well move in seeing as how she spent so little time in her flat. So she did.</p>
<p>Yennefer had continued to work at The Valley in Gors Velen while Tissaia finished studying for her master’s degree. When her family had disowned Tissaia and stopped supporting her, her grandmother had stayed by her side. She sold her shares in the family business for a mighty fine sum and had given Tissaia half of the money. With that, Tissaia had been able to buy her flat in the city centre from her father and finance her studies and lifestyle. ‘And no’ Tissaia had told Yennefer ‘we are not wasting it all on frivolous and short-lived holidays. There are more important and sensible things we need to buy first’. ‘Such as?’ Yennefer had asked.</p>
<p>Such as a place that they could set down roots. When the owner of The Valley, a designer by trade, had checked in on her store in Gors Velen Yennefer’s boss had insisted on showing Miss Findabair her portfolio. A week later she had received a call from The Valley in Toussaint, a city located in the south of the continent, about an apprenticeship in their capital Beauclair. They had brought a house a few miles outside the city with a view of the river and a large garden with a pool – a necessity for coping with Toussaint’s heat. It had cost half a million and made a significant dent in their finances, but not enough that they had to worry about cancelling their three-week cruise around the continent anytime soon.</p>
<p>Yennefer was due to start her apprenticeship next week and Tissaia had an interview with a local law firm tomorrow. She had also enrolled part-time at the local university to earn a teaching degree so that she could practice and teach on the side. Taking law had never been Tissaia’s idea and after thinking about it for months, she had decided that a school was where she wanted to be, and Yennefer agreed. She still recalled the maths that Tissaia had taught her, which is more than she could say about anything else that had ever been on her curriculum. Tissaia had also legally changed her name to Tissaia de Vries, which was her grandmother’s maiden name. Yennefer liked it. She thought that Yennefer de Vries-Vengerberg had a nice ring to it.</p>
<p>“Yen…” said Tissaia. “Put me down.”</p>
<p>“Why?” Yennefer asked as she started climbing the stairs. “You’ve let me carry you before.”</p>
<p>“Once.”</p>
<p>“Twice.”</p>
<p>“When was the second time?”</p>
<p>“After you fell down the stairs,”</p>
<p>Tissaia huffed. “I did not fall,” she said. “I was pushed.” And the man responsible had been put behind the bars in Novigrad prison where he would serve six years for assault and charges related to domestic abuse.</p>
<p>“You’re still not wearing heels about the house,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“Don’t you think you’re being a tad overprotective?” said Tissaia. “Paranoid, some might say.”</p>
<p>“Perhaps, but can you blame me? I need to look after the best thing that ever happened to me. Plus I don’t want to get back on Mrs Grant’s bad side.”</p>
<p>Tissaia laughed. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of her.”</p>
<p>“And you aren’t?” said Yennefer. “Not even a little?”</p>
<p>“I suppose you have me there,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer climbed up onto the landing at the top of the stairs and nudged open the door on the right. A king-sized mattress was lying in the middle of the floor nestled between a dozen boxes wrapped neatly in cello tape with Tissaia’s writing in sharpie on the side. Yennefer took Tissaia inside and lowered her onto the mattress then sat in front of her.</p>
<p>“We still have a few hours left before we have to return the van,” said Yennefer. She started to unzip Tissaia’s jacket. “Plenty of time to consummate our anniversary.”</p>
<p>“And what anniversary might that be?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“The one-year anniversary of the day I learned your name.”</p>
<p>Yennefer tried to push the jacket off Tissaia’s shoulders, but she crossed her arms over her chest and laughed when Yennefer pouted.</p>
<p>“Almost knocked me over, you mean,” said Tissaia.</p>
<p>Yennefer held up her hands. “I caught you, didn’t I?” she said.</p>
<p>“I’m not sure you ever apologized for that.”</p>
<p>“Do you want me to?”</p>
<p>“No,” said Tissaia. “If you had been looking where you were going, then maybe you would have missed me. I’m glad it happened.”</p>
<p>“Me too,” said Yennefer. “I still can’t believe I found you after all those years. Either I’m the luckiest woman alive, or I’m dreaming.”</p>
<p>“And what do I have to do to convince you that this isn’t too good to be true.” Tissaia leaned forwards and brushed her lips against the shell of Yennefer’s right ear. “That it’s real.”</p>
<p>Yennefer shuddered. “Make love to me,” she said.</p>
<p>“And then?”</p>
<p>“Hold me when it’s over.”</p>
<p>Tissaia pulled back just enough to plant a kiss at both corners of Yennefer’s mouth. “What will we talk about, if we talk at all?”</p>
<p>“About the house, our house,” said Yennefer. She took off Tissaia’s jacket and traced kisses across her jaw. “I want you to tell me what we’re going to do to the place to make it ours. What it will look like in a few years.”</p>
<p>“And when the suns goes down?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“I’ll take you to the garden. We’ll lie under the stars and I’ll tell you how much I love you.”</p>
<p>“Why wait? Tell me now.”</p>
<p>“I love you, Tiss.”</p>
<p>“And I love you.”</p>
<p>“Thank you,” said Yennefer.</p>
<p>“For what?” Tissaia asked.</p>
<p>“For being my second chance. You were right about what you said on the bridge. This was worth the wait.”</p>
<p>They made love on the mattress in their new house amongst their things and the mementoes of their year together. Their first, but not their last. Inside one of the cardboard boxes marked ‘YENNEFER’S CLOTHES’ was another cardboard box. Inside that box was a little square box covered in royal blue velvet. Inside that box was something that went with a question Yennefer wanted to ask, and she fucking hoped Tissaia said yes. Heeding advice from our great lady Beyoncé, she needed to put a ring on it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And thus concludes 'Second Chances'. Thank you for joining me in this story, It's been wonderful reading all your comments week after week. I hope this story has a satisfying ending and feel free to drop any asks in the comments or on Tumblr that you might have :)</p>
<p>I don't have any large projects in the works at the moment but you will be seeing some short stories and oneshots from me in the coming weeks. Until next time Xx</p>
<p>If you have enjoyed what I have written thus far, please do consider leaving a comment to let me know what you think. You can also reblog my post on Tumblr (Eileniessa) and send me messages using that platform (you do not need an account to send a message into my inbox).</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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